Edo Police Commissioner Reveals Kidnappers Now Use Hostages as Human Shields

 

The Commissioner of Police in Edo State, Monday Agbonika, has raised serious concerns about the tactics now being used by kidnappers in the state. According to him, these criminals are using their victims as human shields to avoid being apprehended during police operations.

Agbonika made this known on Wednesday, May 6, 2025, during a press briefing to mark his one month in office in Edo. He explained that the police are adapting new strategies to counter this disturbing trend and are committed to rescuing victims safely while arresting the perpetrators.

So far, seven kidnapped victims have been rescued, and 12 suspected kidnappers have been arrested. Most of the suspects have reportedly confessed to the crime. In addition, the police have arrested 95 suspected cultists, who have all been charged to court.

The Commissioner also gave an update on recent recoveries by the police, which include:

• 25 firearms, such as:

  • Two AK-47 rifles

  • One Lar Mark rifle

  • Three English pistols

  • One Beretta pistol

  • Four single-barrel guns

• 130 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition

• 135 live cartridges

• Four stolen/robbed vehicles

• Cash and an iPhone 16 Plus

Speaking on police efforts to ensure safety across the state, Agbonika said:

“We shall sustain engagement with communities, bush combing operations across area commands and divisions, intelligence-led raids of flashpoints and high visibility policing amongst many other strategies with a view to preventing crimes and maintaining law and order in the State.”

He further explained the challenge police officers face during rescue operations:

“Our operations are not easy. Whenever kidnappers take hostages and we go after them like we are going after them now, when we come across these kidnappers, we find it difficult to fire at them because they use their hostages as human shields, and they are at liberty to fire at us."

To improve the fight against kidnapping, Agbonika revealed that the police plan to use technology to track and isolate the criminals more effectively, without endangering the lives of their victims:

"We are working at introducing other technological assistance in tracking these kidnappers and making it easy to pick them out without hurting the victims. We want to be proactive to ensure that kidnapping does not take place.”

He also mentioned that the police, in collaboration with the Edo State Government, are reforming local vigilantes to ensure they only operate within their communities and help secure the forests.