Bandits Behead Abducted Oyo Teacher
Bandits have executed Michael Oyedokun, a mathematics teacher abducted from Community High School, Ahoro-Esinele in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State. The terrorists released a gruesome video on Sunday showing the educator being tied up and forced to speak before being beheaded. The footage, which circulated widely on Telegram on Monday morning, has thrown the local community into deep mourning and triggered widespread panic regarding the safety of the remaining hostages.
The execution marks a violent escalation in an ongoing hostage crisis. Gunmen raided the school on Friday, May 15, taking the principal alongside six other teachers and several students. A joint rescue operation launched by a tactical team of soldiers, the Amotekun Corps, and local vigilantes turned tragic when operatives ran into Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted by the abductors. Multiple security personnel lost their lives in the explosions, while survivors are currently receiving emergency treatment for severe injuries.
Governor Seyi Makinde, speaking through his Special Adviser on Media, Dr. Suleimon Olanrewaju, extended his condolences to the victim’s family and the relatives of the fallen security personnel. The administration confirmed that six local suspects, believed to be informants or logistics providers for the terrorists, have been arrested in connection with the raid. An additional three individuals of interest were detained by a separate state security unit. Despite the heavy casualties suffered by the rescue team, the state government insisted it is deploying both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies to secure the release of the remaining six teachers and students.
The tragedy has sparked sharp outrage across the country. Oyo teachers have staged protests demanding immediate structural protection for schools, while the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the Senate, and various Yoruba socio-cultural groups have condemned the attack and demanded urgent federal intervention. The school raid occurs amid heightened anxiety over regional instability, following a recent fatal ambush on a traveller along the Ibadan-Ijebu road. Security analysts warn that the use of sophisticated military-grade explosives by bandits in the southwest signals a dangerous shift in the logistics and capabilities of terror networks operating within the state.