Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
IDOGUN, Nigeria – In the stillness of early Friday morning, the peace of Igbosi Community along Imeri Road in Idogun, Ose Local Government Area, was shattered. Suspected gunmen stormed the town at about 1:00 a.m. on June 5, 2026, vandalising at least two houses, shooting sporadically, and abducting a nine‑year‑old boy – the son of a local pastor. Before the last echoes of gunfire faded, Pastor Olaosebikan Isaac had fled into a nearby bush to save his own life, leaving behind his child, Victor, who was dragged away into the darkness. The attack has sent shockwaves through a community already weary of rising insecurity in Ondo State’s rural belts.
Residents who spoke on condition of anonymity described scenes of raw terror. “I heard loud bangs and screaming. People were running with only their night clothes,” a neighbour said. “When I looked outside, I saw shadows breaking doors with machetes. They were shouting in a strange dialect.” The assailants moved methodically, first forcing their way into the home of Pastor Isaac. In a desperate attempt to avoid being shot, Isaac escaped through a back opening and plunged into the thicket that surrounds the community. Moments later, the gunmen emerged from the house carrying the wailing boy, Victor Olaosebikan, before fleeing toward a dark track leading into the forest.
Not content with one target, the armed gang then attacked the residence of another community member, Mr Joel Owalekan. They smashed windows and wrenched at his doors, attempting to force entry. Owalekan, however, managed to escape unharmed by slipping into a neighbour’s compound and hiding until the shooting subsided. Two houses suffered extensive structural damage, with walls gouged and doors ripped off their hinges. By the time the gunmen retreated, a trail of spent cartridges and splintered wood marked their path of destruction.
The police were alerted around 2:30 a.m., when both Isaac and Owalekan stumbled to a nearby security post. The Divisional Police Officer immediately mobilised his officers and, in coordination with the Ondo State Security Network Agency – popularly known as Amotekun – launched a joint search‑and‑rescue operation. Officers combed surrounding forests, bush paths, and dried stream beds, but as of the time of this report, Victor has not been found.
Confirming the incident, the Ondo State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abayomi Jimoh, said: “The command has commenced an intensive manhunt for the kidnappers. Investigations have begun, and relevant exhibits have been recovered from the scene.” He added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Felix Ohagwu, had personally directed all tactical squads and intelligence cells to prioritise the case. “Every available resource is being deployed to rescue the boy unharmed and bring the perpetrators to justice,” Jimoh said. He also appealed to anyone with credible information to report it immediately.
Local vigilante groups and Amotekun personnel have since intensified their patrols, setting up roadblocks on exit routes that lead toward the border with Edo State. The area’s rugged terrain – marked by dense forest and scattered hills – has historically served as a haven for kidnap gangs, who often shuttle victims between Ondo, Edo, and Kogi States to evade capture. “We have told the security forces where the bandits usually hide their captives,” a local youth leader said. “But we need boots on the ground at night, not just morning patrols.”
This is not the first time the Ose Local Government Area has witnessed such violence. In February and March 2026, several communities along the Uso/Owo Expressway experienced midnight raids on churches, resulting in the abduction of worshippers – some of whom were pregnant women. Those incidents forced the police to temporarily ban night programmes at worship centres across the state. The current attack, however, is striking for its raw cruelty: a nine‑year‑old boy seized while his father watched helplessly from the bush.
For Pastor Isaac, the hours since the abduction have been a waking nightmare. Neighbours say he has not slept, moving from one security post to another, clutching a photograph of Victor. “He keeps asking why they took the boy instead of him,” a family friend said. “He is a man of faith, but right now, he is just a father in agony.” No ransom demand has been publicly reported yet, but kidnap gangs in the region typically contact families within 48 hours, often requesting sums between ₦2 million and ₦10 million.
The incident has sparked fresh outrage among civil society groups in Akure, the state capital. The Ondo branch of the Nigerian Bar Association called for a “re‑evaluation of intelligence gathering in rural areas”, while the Christian Association of Nigeria, Ondo chapter, issued a statement urging the government to equip local security outfits with night‑vision gear and communication devices. “We cannot keep losing our children to faceless gunmen,” the statement read.
As darkness returns to Idogun on the evening of June 5, the community sits behind locked doors. The only movement comes from patrol vans and the occasional torchlight of vigilante members combing the forest edge. Somewhere out there, a nine‑year‑old boy is waiting. And his father, still covered in the scratches of the bush he ran into, is waiting too – praying for a rescue that many fear may never come.
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