Suspected bandits have abducted a woman and her child along the failed portion of the Supare-Ayegunle Road in Akoko South West Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The Peoples Gazette reports that the victim, described as a nursing mother, was reportedly seized alongside her baby while travelling to the market when the gunmen struck.

Contacted on Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Ondo State police command, Jimoh Abayomi, said he could not immediately confirm the incident, describing the available information as sketchy.

“The information at my disposal is still very sketchy, and I can’t confirm it yet. I’ll revert once there’s enough information,” Mr Abayomi told the Gazette. 

However, a close relative of the victims, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed the abduction, saying the family had been thrown into distress.

According to him, the husband of the abducted woman, a known furniture maker in Akungba-Akoko, has been appealing to security agents to intensify efforts in rescuing his wife and child unhurt.

Residents of the area have repeatedly raised concerns over the deteriorating condition of the Supare-Ayegunle Road.

Last year, suspected bandits attacked a Divisional Police Station at Ipele, in the Owo Local Government Area of the state on New Year’s eve. 

Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa had repeatedly claimed that his administration would not relent in dislodging terrorists hiding in forest reserves in the state.