Gunmen invade Ibadan villages Share 43 Tweet 0

\Five villages along Ibadan-Iwo Road were on Wednesday invaded by gunmen who attacked residents and dispossessed them of their valuables.

The yet-to-be-apprehended gunmen, numbering about 20, also had a gun duel with the police before escaping into the bush.

They also shot a night guard, leaving him to battle for survival.

Their first port of call was Ardis Farms, Lagun, a 200 hectare palm tree farm where they shot a night guard, Jimmy Aido, in the hands and thigh.

Thereafter, they allegedly headed to Offa, Adeoye, Lapeta and Adedokun villages where they also dispossessed the villagers of their valuables. After the invasion, they mounted a road block during which they robbed some motorists.

Narrating their ordeal in the hands of the night marauders, the Farm Supervisor at Ardis Farms, Mr. Olanipekun Ogunkolade, recalled that the bandits invaded the farm at about 9:00pm on Tuesday.

He said they grabbed the first person on sight, who is a woman, and forced her to lead them to other residents on the farm.

According to Ogunkolade, the woman led them to their rooms and called them out, saying some people wanted to buy some items from them.

He said: “Wondering who could be around to buy goods at that odd hour, I left the food I was eating and came out. As soon as I came out, they rushed and seized me. They ordered me to lie prostrate which I did at once. At gun point, they asked others with me to bring out all our money to which we complied without grudges. After that, they asked us to bring out more money but we told them that was all we had. Then they broke into other rooms one after the other.

“Meanwhile, one of our night guards, Jimmy Aido, spotted them from a distance and ran to inform the Chief Security Officer (CSO) who was not on the premises at the time. But they laid ambush for him. On his return, they shot him in the hand and thigh.

“Then, the wife started screaming. Her voice attracted vigilance members from nearby Lagun village. They shot into the air to scare the armed robbers.”

“Shortly after that, I think the CSO alerted the police. The policemen arrived around 3:00am and took the shot security guard for medical treatment.”