OKO-IRESE, Nigeria — An official of the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) and two other people were reportedly abducted in Kwara State while travelling to deliver ransom and other items for the release of an earlier kidnap victim, according to people familiar with the incident.
The reported abduction occurred on Monday, June 22, 2026, in Oko-Irese, in Irepodun Local Government Area.
The OPC chieftain, Bayo Fabiyi, was said to have been travelling with a driver and another associate when they were intercepted by armed men.
People familiar with the matter said the team was carrying about ₦30 million, five motorcycles and three bags of rice as part of the terms demanded for the release of a person previously kidnapped in the community.
The ransom delivery, according to those accounts, was connected to efforts to secure the release of the earlier victim.
One source said the victim had already been killed before the ransom team arrived, though those sent to deliver the items were said not to have known that at the time.
The armed men were said to have directed the group into a forested area on a route linking Kwara and Kogi states before seizing them at gunpoint.
A person familiar with the incident said Fabiyi had received a warning before leaving for the journey, but proceeded with the trip.
Police Say No Formal Report Was Received
Ojo Adekimi, the Kwara State commissioner of police, said the command had not received a formal report of any kidnapping involving an OPC member at the time he was contacted.
A source said the incident had not initially been reported to security agencies.
The police commissioner said the command would investigate once a formal report was made.
The circumstances of the reported abduction, the identities of the two people said to have travelled with Fabiyi and the condition of the abducted persons were not immediately clear.
