First-hand observers have credited the invasion of Igueben Train Station in Edo State to the lack of security personnel at the transport facility.
The incident as reported by Theliberationnews occurred on Saturday wherein no fewer than 30 passengers and staff were abducted.
Confirming the incident, the Edo State Police Command disclosed that at least one of the kidnappers had been arrested by security men and hunters in the area.
Speaking on the development, on Sunday, the Liaison officer to the local government area, Best Oseh, made it known that security agencies and paramilitary organisations were combing forests in the area for clues.
His words: “As I speak, people are in the field all over the place, vigilantes, security agencies and other people, everybody is concerned but we have to be careful with what we divulge so we don’t jeopardize the processes we are doing.
“As for the category of people kidnapped, some of them are from Igueben, while others are passengers from other places and as for the number for now, we are looking at over 30 but we can only give a comprehensive number when preliminary investigations are concluded.”
Giving more information on the development, a resident of the area, Comrade Odia Benson, said the abductors released two kids who were with them, while a woman reportedly escaped.
He said some staff of the NRC, including the station manager and ticket clerk, were among those abducted.
He said: “The train normally arrives by 5 pm, so at about 20 minutes to 5, the outlaws came through the bush path and invaded the place, taking away the station manager, booking clerk and about 29 other passengers made up of males and females.
“As I speak with you, the deputy governor left the place about an hour ago, the Commissioner of Police and his men are here, the 4 Brigade, Nigerian Army Commander, is here, the Director of the Department of State Services, DSS, is here and many paramilitary representatives.
‘’The DPO, Igueben and his men, the Esan Akatakpa Security network, the hunters association have been in the forest since last night (Saturday night) doing bush combing. We are hoping that by the end of today, (yesterday), they will be rescued.
“The railway station is in the forest, there is no security, no police, no vigilante and they are at the mercy of God. The station is in Igeueben town, just about 1.2 km away from Igueben General Hospital.
“I think only three of the victims are from Igueben; one of them is from Ward 8, we had another who is married to an Igueben man but based in Warri, while others are from Ekpoma, Uromi, and Ubiaja. Some are not even from Edo State
“The kidnappers released two children, it is believed that they felt the children will slow down their movements. They dropped them in an abandoned petrol station and called the family of the mother of the children that they should go and pick them up from the place they were dropped off.
‘’One woman also escaped with her little baby. The woman escaped and found herself in Opoji, which is in Esan Central local government area.”
Edo State Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Chris Nehikhare, who disclosed news of the arrest of the suspect yesterday, also said the military, police, vigilante, hunters and others are on the trails of the kidnappers.
Addressing journalists in Benin City, Nehikhare said the deputy governor of the state, Comrade Philip Shaibu, had also visited the train station where he met with one of the victims who escaped.
He said: “At the moment, security personnel made up of the military and the police as well as men of the vigilante network and hunters are intensifying search-and-rescue operations in reasonable radius to rescue the kidnap victims.
‘’As of 3 pm yesterday, one suspect has been captured and is helping the Police with their investigation.
“One victim of the 32 people kidnapped escaped from of the abductors. We are confident that the other victims will be rescued in the coming hours.”
The commissioner also said, “the deputy governor of the State, Comrade Philip Shaibu, has visited the Igueben train station for an on-the-spot assessment of rescue efforts and to throw the government’s weight behind the security operations.”
He said the Edo State government “sympathises with the families of the victims for this unfortunate occurrence”.
Nehikhare appealed for calm and urged citizens to assist security personnel with information on suspicious movements in and around their neighborhoods, particularly in the area where the rescue operation was taking place.
Recall that Theliberationnews reported on Sunday that NRC has shut the train station indefinitely.
The transport corporation explained that the step had become necessary, following rising security challenges.
The invasion and kidnapping incident in Edo came barely one year after the March 28, 2022 attack by bandits on the Abuja-Kaduna train, resulting in the death of about 14 passengers while 65 others were abducted.
A public announcement by the NRC posted on the passengers’ WhatsApp Group, said the closure was “till further notice.”
The “Public announcement read: “This is to inform our general public and most especially our esteemed passengers, that Ekehen Station has been temporarily closed due to security issues, till further notice.”
Another notice read: “Due to the incident at Ekehen station on Saturday, WITS 01/ 02 will no longer stop at Ekehen Station. Please advise our customers.”
