SEVERAL INJURED AS SUSPECTED BANDITS AMBUSH SUNDAY IGBOHO’S SECURITY TEAM IN OYO FOREST. (PHOTO).

  Several Injured as Suspected Bandits Ambush Sunday Igboho’s Security Team in Oyo Forest

Several operatives of a private security network linked to Yoruba Nation campaigner Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, were injured after suspected cross-border bandits ambushed them during an anti-crime operation in the Old Oyo National Park.

The incident occurred while members of the Iru Ekun security outfit — associated with Igboho — were conducting a mission to track and dislodge suspected kidnappers and other armed criminal elements operating within the expansive forest reserve.

According to sources familiar with the operation, the team had deployed surveillance drones to identify criminal hideouts and monitor the movement of armed groups before advancing into the area. The mission, however, turned violent when the operatives came under heavy gunfire from suspected bandits believed to be part of cross-border criminal networks.

A fierce gun battle ensued inside the forest, leaving several members of the Iru Ekun team wounded. The exact number of casualties has not been officially confirmed.

The ambush has raised fresh concerns about the growing activities of kidnappers, bandits, and other armed groups in forests and remote communities across the South-West region.

Efforts to get an official reaction from the Oyo State Police Command proved unsuccessful, as calls to the Command’s spokesperson, DSP Olayinka Ayanlade, were not answered at the time of this report.