House Belonging to Kidnappers, Terrorists & Armed Robbers Demolished in Kogi

A one-storey building in Okene, identified as the hideouts of kidnappers and armed robbers has been demolished by the Kogi State government.

The house was said to be owned by a kidnap kingpin, Tijani Abubakar.

The state government also demolished a mosque owned by a suspected terrorist group.

The demolition of the buildings, supervised by Governor Yahaya Bello, was in line with the state’s law on terrorism.

The building belonging to Abubakar at Oyunkoko Ward in Okene Local Government was the first to be demolished at about 2:30pm.

The mosque belonging to the notorious Ahlul-Sunnah in Inike, also in Okene, was demolished later.

The mosque was said to have been hijacked by the notorious terrorists group, Boko Haram in 2015 and had been serving as their operational base.

The buildings were identified by the Military Joint Task Force which recently arrested some 17 robbery, kidnap and terrorism suspects.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Wilson Inalegwu and heads of other security agencies, accompanied the governor during the demolition.

The state has lined up other buildings identified as criminals’ hideouts in the state for demolition.

The Police boss said. “This is a strong message to kidnappers and hoodlums that they must change their ways. They should work hard and earn a decent living. We want to make Kogi safe so that those living here or travelling through will not have fear of being kidnapped."