FOUR HOSTAGES, SOLDIER DIE AS GUNMEN ATTACK CHINESE EXPATRIATES IN OGUN DREDGING SITE
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By:Tajudeen Aminat
At least four hostages and a soldier were killed following a kidnapping attack targeting Chinese expatriates at a dredging site in Magbon Village, Mowe, within Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.
The attack occurred in the early hours of Monday when suspected kidnappers invaded the dredging site, popularly known as Capo. Eyewitnesses said security personnel engaged the attackers in a gun battle, during which one soldier was killed and another sustained gunshot wounds.
A local hunter who joined security operatives in the search for the fleeing suspects was also reportedly killed during the operation.
Confirming the incident, Assistant Director of Army Public Relations, 35 Artillery Brigade, Major Idereghi Akari, said troops working alongside the Nigerian Police responded to a distress call from the site where expatriate workers were carrying out operations.
According to him, security operatives exchanged gunfire with the attackers, killing one of the suspected kidnappers. The remaining assailants retreated through nearby forest areas towards the Ogun River.
Major Akari disclosed that the gunmen abducted five people and used them as human shields while escaping from pursuing security forces. He said four of the hostages were later killed by the attackers before they fled through the river channel in a boat.
One of the hostages reportedly escaped and informed authorities that the kidnappers also took away the body of their slain accomplice.
The army further confirmed that, in addition to the soldier killed during the operation, another soldier and two police officers suffered gunshot injuries and are receiving treatment.
The remains of the deceased soldier and the four victims have been deposited at the General Hospital mortuary in Sagamu.
Security agencies have since intensified patrols and surveillance across the area as efforts continue to track down and apprehend the fleeing suspects.
The military reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding lives and property, assuring residents that ongoing operations in the Mowe axis will continue until those responsible for the attack are brought to justice.
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