Fear of kidnappers sparks crackdown on destitute in Ilorin

The increasing rate of abduction in the Kwara, the Confluence State, has put destitute who wander within the capital, Ilorin, at risk as some of them now fall victim of mob action on mere suspicions of being child kidnappers.Residents and police authorities differ sharply on the current situation, with the latter voicing out its displeasure […]

The increasing rate of abduction in the Kwara, the Confluence State, has put destitute who wander within the capital, Ilorin, at risk as some of them now fall victim of mob action on mere suspicions of being child kidnappers.
Residents and police authorities differ sharply on the current situation, with the latter voicing out its displeasure over what it called the increasing propensity of residents to take the laws into their hands in dealing with suspected kidnappers.
At the last count, at least three suspected kidnappers who were alleged to have feigned insanity have been killed in mob attacks; they were beaten to a state of coma before been drenched with petrol and then burnt alive, Daily Trust gathered.
One of the instances was the killing of a man suspected to be a kidnapper whose name was given as Raimi Wasiu, said to have hailed from Osogbo, Osun State capital, according to sources at the scene of the incident at Odota, along Airport Road on Sunday August  4, 2013.
The witness told Daily Trust that the suspect had confessed to being a kidnapper alongside seven others, adding that nemesis caught up with him while attempting to kidnap a child of about nine.
“People in the area have been watching the man who lived in an abandoned building. And he was caught attempting to abduct a little child,” the source added.
He was chased from the building and dispossessed of charms, amulet and two blackberry phones before he was burnt alive. The police arrived later and collected his remains.
Another “insane” man was last month chased into the Post Office end of Asa river after being suspected of feigning lunacy. He was reportedly caught using a cell phone and when he noticed that the people were suspicious of him, he jumped into the river but some able-bodied men swam after him and brought him out of the river. He was immediately descended upon by the waiting mob.
Though the police have kicked against the jungle justice meted out to the suspect, residents of the area who spoke to our correspondent said they were convinced that the young man was a kidnapper. “If he was truly a madman, why did he jump into the river to escape being caught,” a resident asked.
A suspected kidnapper, in his 40s, escaped similar fate as he was left off after he was subjected to thorough beating, near the Ilorin International Airport. The man, our correspondent gathered was alleged to be working for ritualists. He was reportedly found with three phones and some foreign currency.
Last Friday, at around 6:30 pm, another insane man also narrowly escaped lynching following the swift intervention of the police who reportedly rescued the man. A witnessed told our correspondent that the man was suspected to be a kidnapper and descended upon because he was holding a black polythene bag but nothing incriminating was found in his possession.
Last Tuesday, two children were reportedly kidnapped from Idi-Ape, Ilorin East Local Government Area of the state after being sent to dispose some refuse. Daily Trust gathered, however that they were found about 24 hours at the Nigeria-Benin Republic border (Seme) in Lagos.
Sources told our correspondent that the alleged kidnappers had stopped at a filling station at the border when the children regained consciousness and screamed for help attracting the attention of police officers. The suspected traffickers reportedly zoomed off abandoning the children along with about four.
Upon interrogation, they were said to have given information which enabled the police to trace their parents at Idi Ape in Ilorin East Local Government.
Following this development, some youth of Idi-Ape decided to comb the community which, they claimed, harboured some destitute, following which two suspected to be kidnappers were arrested.
However, the police claimed the arrested insane men suspected to be kidnappers were innocent. Similarly, a resident of Odota/Airport, Alhaji Saka Ibrahim Abolaji, noted that no parent had reported any case of kidnap yet people descended on every madman on the street claiming they were kidnappers.
“You see a mentally retarded man, or one who is drunk and you call him a madman. How do you expect him to defend himself?” he said. He advised parents to always keep their eyes on their kids and be wary of the kind of errands they sent them.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Fabode Olufemi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), in a chat with Daily Trust in his office warned residents of the state against taking laws into their hands, saying even though every Nigerian has the right to arrest, such right excludes killing, maiming and causing injury to those arrested.
 Also speaking with our correspondent, the State Commissioner for Social Development, Culture and Tourism, Elder Samuel Afolayan, advised members of the public against dispensing jungle justice and tasked security agents to wade into the matter to ascertain the true identity of victims.
He said the ministry was unaware of any destitute being set ablaze or tortured for allegedly being a kidnapper.
He disclosed that the ministry had stepped up its campaign on ridding Ilorin streets of destitute by picking anyone found wandering about, and urged the public to report any suspect to security agents or the ministry instead of taking laws into their hands.