Gunmen Invade Edo Community, Abducts Family, Demands N260m Ransom
Armed assailants recently kidnapped nine members of a single family in Edo. This occured while they were returning from school, on Monday, February 2, 2026. The victims included a nursing mother, six children, a baby, and her two younger sisters. Witnesses report that the abducted at about 5:00 p.m. at Eko-Abeku-Iyowa Road, within the Evboneka Community, along the Benin-Akure Road. The criminals have since established contact with relatives to demand a staggering two hundred and sixty million naira. This incident marks another dark chapter in the deteriorating security situation within the South-South geopolitical zone. Local authorities have now activated tactical teams to track the kidnappers into the surrounding forest reserves.
The family remains in distress as the kidnappers insist on the full payment of the ransom amount. These criminals often target remote farming communities where formal police presence remains tragically thin and largely ineffective. Furthermore, the high ransom demand highlights a growing trend of predatory kidnapping targeting middle-class Nigerian families. Residents of the affected community now live in perpetual fear of subsequent attacks by these non-state actors. Many farmers have abandoned their ancestral lands to seek refuge in more secure urban administrative centers. Conversely, the state government maintains that security agencies are working tirelessly to secure a safe release.
Security experts argue that the lack of modern surveillance equipment hampers the rescue operations significantly today. These kidnappers utilize the dense vegetation to hide their victims and evade detection by local vigilante groups. In a related development, the Edo State Police Command urged citizens to provide useful intelligence to officers. Furthermore, the Inspector General of Police has ordered a massive deployment of special anti-kidnapping units to Edo. This surge in tactical personnel aims to dismantle the criminal networks operating along the state’s major highways. The success of these operations depends heavily on the cooperation of the local indigenous populations.
The federal government must reconsider its national security strategy to address these recurring rural terror incidents. Modern technology like drones and satellite imaging could assist in pinpointing the location of these criminal hideouts. Furthermore, community policing remains the most viable solution for protecting vulnerable citizens in remote agrarian areas. The current ransom culture fuels a dangerous cycle of criminality that undermines the entire national economy. Families are forced to sell their life savings and properties to satisfy the greed of these bandits. The Journal Nigeria will continue to monitor this developing story until the victims return home safely.
Nigeria cannot afford to allow kidnapping to become a normalized feature of our daily national life. Protecting the lives and property of every citizen remains the primary constitutional duty of the state. Only a decisive military and intelligence response can restore the public’s waning confidence in our security forces. We must demand accountability from the commanders charged with maintaining peace in our troubled rural corridors. The safety of the Nigerian family represents the ultimate benchmark for measuring our collective national progress.