By Atoyebi Nike
At least 20 suspects were arrested on Tuesday as operatives of the Edo State Special Security Squad, codenamed Operation Flush Out Kidnappers and Cultists, raided multiple criminal hotspots in Benin City.
The operation, launched by Governor Monday Okpebholo, swept through areas including Isiohor, Iguosa, Oluku, and Ibiwe/Lagos Street, uncovering dangerous weapons, drugs, and other incriminating materials.
John Adewale Eseikhaigbe, a member of the anti-cultism and anti-kidnapping squad, praised the governor’s swift response to the recent killings in the state. “We’re making it clear that criminality has no place in Edo,” he said.
Eseikhaigbe added that the squad’s focus extends beyond cultism to combating drug trafficking, kidnapping, and armed robbery, all of which are often interlinked.
Also speaking, another squad member, Eribo Emwanta, addressed the sealing of a hotel in Isiohor, stating it was part of broader efforts to dismantle criminal hideouts and not an act of persecution.
The security task force comprises personnel from the military, police, NSCDC, vigilantes, hunters, repentant cultists, and other community stakeholders.
