The Ondo State Police Command has deployed a permanent tactical team base in Ilu-Abo as part of aggressive new measures to combat kidnapping and violent crimes ravaging communities along the Ilu-Abo, Ayede and Ogbese axis.
In a statement signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abayomi Jimoh, the Commissioner of Police, CP Adebowale Lawal, announced the development on Monday during a visit to Ilu-Abo, where he addressed protesters who had taken to the streets over deteriorating security conditions in the area.
The CP assured residents that the command was fully aware of their concerns and was taking decisive action.
The newly established tactical base will be manned round-the-clock by specially trained operatives drawn from the command’s elite units, including anti-kidnapping squads and other tactical formations. Their mandate covers intensive patrols, surveillance operations, intelligence gathering and coordinated raids across Ilu-Abo, Ayede, Ogbese and neighbouring communities.
Beyond the base deployment, the command has stepped up joint security operations, stop-and-search exercises, forest combing missions and intelligence-led raids targeting criminal hideouts and suspected kidnapping networks embedded in forested and boundary communities.
Lawal also directed all Divisional Police Officers within the affected and neighbouring divisions to collaborate closely with the tactical team, local vigilantes, hunters and community-based security groups to strengthen intelligence sharing and speed up response to emerging threats.
While urging protesters to remain calm and law-abiding, the CP warned that kidnapping and violent crimes would not be tolerated anywhere in Ondo State, vowing that the command would continue to pursue and prosecute perpetrators.
Residents have been advised to report suspicious persons or activities to the nearest police station or through the command’s emergency line: 0906 058 8958. The command assured that all information received would be treated with strict confidentiality.