Security operatives track down, arrest suspected killers of farmers in Ondo

A joint security team has arrested the suspects believed to have murdered three farmers in Ala, Akure North Local Government Area of Ondo State.

According to reports by The Nation, the suspects, who were allegedly dressed in army camouflage, were captured during a coordinated overnight operation that extended into the early hours of Tuesday.

The operation was carried out deep inside the forest by a combined team of operatives from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Amotekun Corps.

Pictures of the suspects being dragged into an Amotekun security van have begun to circulate on the social media on Tuesday morning.

A security source who preferred not to be named confirmed the arrest, disclosing that authorities have intensified patrols across the area to prevent further attacks and reassure residents of their safety.

“The suspects are now in custody for further investigation,” the source added.

The Southern Nigeria Youth Congress (SNYC) had on Monday raised alarm over what it described as the “senseless attacks and killings of local farmers” by suspected armed bandits in Akure North LGA.

In a statement in Akure, the group revealed that no fewer than three farmers were killed at Ala, in the Igbatoro area of Akure North, by bandits terrorising the axis.

According to the statement signed by the group’s spokesperson, Afe Adegboyega, the killings were “heart-wrenching and unacceptable.”

“The murder of hardworking farmers is a painful reminder that many farming communities remain unsafe despite repeated assurances from security agencies.

“Our farmers are the backbone of local food production. When they can no longer go to their farms without fear, our collective survival as a people is threatened.

“The time to act is now before insecurity consumes more innocence,” the statement read.