scene of the attack on travellers along Ekiti road
Gunmen kill one traveller, abduct two others along Ekiti road
Ekiti Police Command has confirmed that one person was killed by gunmen while two others abducted when gunmen attacked the car they were travelling in between Ilejemeje and Ido/Osi local government areas of the state, Friday evening.
However, eyewitnesses claim that five passengers inside the car were abducted while another occupant believed to be the driver was killed on the spot by the gunmen who they claimed were Fulani herdsmen.
The occupants in the car, said to be a Lexus 330 SUV with registration number LAGOS- KRD 264 GV, were attacked while passing through the area in the forest between Ewu-Ekiti and Ayetoro-Ekiti by the gunmen, forcing the driver of the vehicle to swerve into the bush, as the attackers whisked away the other occupants of the car to an unknown destination in the forest, after killing the person behind the wheels.
The car was left untouched with the occupants taken away.
While the identities of the victims are yet to be ascertained as at the time of this report, the victims, according to eyewitness account, are said to be guests at an occasion in the area and were returning to their destinations when they were accosted by the gunmen believed to be Fulani herdsmen.
Residents of the area say they have been complaining of incessant attacks perpetrated by unknown gunmen they accused of being Fulani herdsmen for a long time now without any form of intervention by the authorities.
Police Public Relations Officer for the Ekiti State Command, Sunday Abutu, who confirmed the incident to journalists on Saturday, said officers in conjunction with local hunters and operatives of Amotekun Corps are already combing the forest area to rescue the victims.
It would be recalled that the traditional ruler of the village, (Ewu-Ekiti), Oba Adetutu Ajayi, in Ilejemeje Local Government Area of Ekiti State, was reportedly shot by bandits on April the 10th 2021.
While on June 10, 2021, two hotel staff in Ayetoro-Ekiti were kidnapped, security guards attached to the hotel were also dealt serious machete cuts by the attackers as they are still recuperating at an undisclosed Heath facility in the state.
