Two pastors abducted from their residence and one other earlier snatched in Yola, Adamawa State have been rescued, the State Police command said.
The Police said Friday the General Overseer of Freedom Power Chapel International, Rev Mike Ochigbo and another pastor in the church, John Moses who were taken from Nyibango area of Yola in the early hours of Wednesday, were rescued with one other person on Friday after a gun battle with the abductors who were keeping the victims.
A statement by the Public Relations Officer of the Adamawa State Police Command, SP Sulaiman Nguroje, said the rescue mission was set in motion shortly after the incident on Wednesday in line with a directives by the state Commissioner of Police, CP Afolabi Babatola who vowed that the two abducted men of God would be freed.
Nguroje stated, “Further to the Command’s commitment to enhance proactive strategies, the Command on 26/5/2023 disconnected a criminal network connecting part of Gujubabu, Bole, Yolde Pate and part of Yadim, in Yola South and Fufore local government areas.
“The operation which was carried out by the Command’s operatives led by Commander Crack Squad in a joint operation with members of Tabbital Pulaku hunters yielded positive results.
“The outcome of these successes followed a collaborative strategy with hunters to dislodge criminal hideouts, designed by the command to rescue the kidnapped victims and apprehend the culprits.”
He added that a gun battle during the rescue moves claimed the life of one of the suspected kidnappers.
He added, “The suspected kidnappers upon, sighting our men around the hideout, engaged them in a gun duel; as a result, one (1) of them was neutralized while others escaped with bullet wounds.
“One AK-47 rifle with 15 rounds of live ammunition was recovered and the victims were rescued unharmed.”
