The forest along the Kogi-Kwara border turned into a graveyard on Monday night as at least 15 suspected bandits and kidnappers were cut down in a blistering security raid, their charred remains left strewn among smouldering hideouts.
Heavily armed troops, backed by police and vigilante fighters, descended on the gang’s camp at midnight after intelligence linked them to Sunday’s bloody assault on Oke Ode community in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State.
What followed was hours of relentless gunfire. By dawn, the once-bustling camp had been reduced to ashes, bodies of slain bandits lay in twisted heaps, some burned beyond recognition, alongside scorched motorcycles, abandoned rifles and piles of ammunition.
“This was a message,” one senior officer involved declared. “The bandits thought they could outgun us, but our firepower overwhelmed them. Their stronghold has been destroyed and this is only the beginning.”
Security officials confirmed that no casualties were recorded among their ranks, hailing the raid as a decisive blow to the gangs terrorising communities straddling the Kogi-Kwara axis.
For residents of Oke Ode, still mourning the weekend’s carnage, the operation offered grim relief. Community leaders praised the security forces but urged constant patrols to stop the criminals from regrouping.
Government insiders revealed that more offensives are being prepared, vowing to flush out every last hideout and reclaim the forests from bandit control.
The midnight assault underlined a new, uncompromising strategy: to take the fight deep into bandit enclaves, burn them out, and leave no sanctuary behind.
