Armed assailants recently attacked travelers on the Ife-Akure highway, leading to the tragic rape of a female victim.
OsunDailyNG gathered that the incident involved eight gunmen who targeted two vehicles, a commercial bus and a private car, traveling from Lagos to Ilesa.
According to Vanguard, the robbers stopped the vehicles near Osu and forcefully took valuables, including money and ATM cards, from the victims.
One of the passengers, identified as Wale, recounted how the gunmen shot the bus driver, leaving him injured but alive. Unfortunately, a female passenger in the car was sexually assaulted during the ordeal.
His words, “The driver of the bus was shot but not killed. He was injured. One of the passengers in the car, a woman was raped. Money on us was forcefully taken. They collected all our ATM cards and made us to transfer various amount into their accounts.
“Some of us that escaped into bush alerted security men. Not long, policemen, vigilantes and members of Nigeria Hunters and Forest Security Service arrived and they began to comb the area.
“Few minutes after, they arrested one of the robbers- a man. But others have fled. They took him away. The driver of the bus I was traveling in was rushed to a hospital in Ile-Ife where he is currently recieving treatment.”
Local law enforcement, vigilantes, and the Nigeria Hunters and Forest Security Service quickly arrived on the scene to apprehend one of the attackers, while the rest fled.
The captured suspect is now in custody, aiding the ongoing investigation. Meanwhile, the injured victims, including the bus driver, are receiving treatment at a hospital in Ile-Ife.
The Osun State Police Command, through its acting spokesperson Emmanuel Giwa-Alade, confirmed the incident and praised the swift response of the local security teams.
