Ogun: Police rescue 25 Ivorians from kidnappers

Adejobi

Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have rescued 25 Ivorian nationals from the hands of a cross-border kidnapping syndicate operating in Ogun State.

The police also arrested eight suspects in connection with the crime, following a swift and coordinated operation carried out in collaboration with Interpol.

According to a statement on Friday by the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the operation was launched in response to a formal request from the National Central Bureau, Abidjan.

Adejobi said the request followed a report by Kaussi Marianman, who alleged that her son, Ladji Yoa Pierre, had been lured to Nigeria under false pretenses by Simon Oliver and Michael Odunga with a promise to secure travel documents to Belgium.

Upon arrival, Adejobi said Pierre was held captive, and the suspected kidnappers demanded a ransom of 2.5 million CFA francs, approximately ₦6.6 million.

He said, “The operation was triggered by a report filed on April 23rd, 2025, by Mrs. Kaussi Amenan Marianman at NCB Abidjan alleging that her son, Ladji Yoa Pierre, had been lured to Nigeria under false pretenses by some individuals who were later identified as Simon Oliver and Michael Odunga, promised to facilitate his travel documents to Belgium.

“Once in Nigeria, Ladji Yoa Pierre was held captive, with the abductors demanding a ransom of two million five hundred CFA (equivalent to six million six hundred and twenty-five thousand Naira).”Adejobi said the Commissioner of Police, INTERPOL Annex Lagos, Bode Ojajuni, immediately deployed a team of experienced investigators to track down the suspects and rescue the victim. Punch