The Oyo State Police Command has launched an intensive joint security operation to rescue a farmer, Mr. Owoade Mathew, who was abducted in Igbojaye Community, while clarifying that the incident did not occur within the premises of any school as widely reported in some sections of the media.
According to an official statement signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, Oyo State Command, DSP Ayanlade Olayinka, preliminary investigation revealed that a distress report was received at about 9:50 a.m. on Sunday, July 12, 2026, from the Officer-in-Charge of the Igbojaye Police Outpost after the victim failed to return home from his farm.
The statement explained that Mathew had left for his farm along the Igbojaye–Budo Aare Farm Road at about 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 11, 2026. Concerned family members later organized a search and discovered his Bajaj motorcycle abandoned at the farm in the early hours of Sunday.
Police said the victim’s mobile phone was subsequently used to contact his family, during which the caller informed them that he had been abducted, prompting an immediate report to the authorities.
The Command clarified that contrary to misleading reports circulating in some media outlets, the victim was kidnapped while working on his farm and not within the premises of any school. It urged members of the public to disregard the inaccurate reports and rely only on information released through the official channels of the Oyo State Police Command.
Following the report, the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State Command, CP Abimbola Ayodeji Olugbenga, psc, mnips, directed the immediate deployment of a coordinated joint rescue team comprising police operatives, personnel of the Amotekun Corps, local vigilantes and hunters to the area.
The security team commenced an intensive combing of the surrounding forests in search of the victim. The operation has since been reinforced by the Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Squad and other tactical units working alongside other security stakeholders to secure the victim’s safe rescue and apprehend the abductors.
The Commissioner of Police reaffirmed the Command’s determination to rid Oyo State of kidnapping and other violent crimes. He urged residents to remain calm and vigilant while providing credible and timely information to support ongoing security operations, assuring that all available operational and intelligence resources were being deployed to ensure the victim’s safe rescue.
The Oyo State Police Command reiterated its commitment to protecting lives and property through sustained collaboration with sister security agencies and community stakeholders to maintain peace and public safety across the state.
