The Pathfinder
Saturday, February 21, 2026
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Gun-wielding bandits have reportedly descended on Irele and Ijowa communities in Ajoni Local Council Development Area of Ekiti State, leaving residents traumatised, livelihoods disrupted and lives lost.
For more than 11 days, the assailants are said to have held the communities hostage, abducting no fewer than five persons and killing an elderly woman whose family was allegedly ordered to pay ₦1.5 million before her corpse could be released for burial.
Speaking on behalf of the affected communities, High Chief Kehinde Abejide, the Akogun of Irele Kingdom, described the attacks as a reign of terror marked by “unabated recklessness” and growing impunity.
According to him, the ordeal began about two weeks ago when a young farmer was kidnapped on his farmland. Three days later, the abductors reportedly demanded ₦10 million for his release.
“Our people in Irele, Ijowa and Oke-Ako are prisoners in their own homes,” the chief lamented. “Farming activities have stopped, cross-border trade has collapsed, and fear has become our daily companion.”
He recounted a particularly harrowing incident in which the bandits allegedly opened fire on a young man and his mother, popularly known as Mummy Isaac, as they rode home from the farm on a motorcycle.
While the young man reportedly survived with gunshot wounds to the chest and is currently receiving treatment at the Federal Medical Centre, Ikole-Ekiti, his mother was said to have been captured.
“She fell during the attack,” the chief said. “They dragged her into the forest. Later, they summoned the family, showed them her lifeless body, and told them to go and look for money.”
Even as the community mourns, the violence has reportedly continued. During a phone interview, Chief Abejide disclosed that four more persons had just been abducted, underscoring the worsening security situation.
“These bandits now operate with frightening confidence,” he said. “Our people are angry, helpless and feel abandoned.”
The traditional leader made an emotional appeal to Governor Biodun Oyebanji and security agencies to urgently intervene before the communities are completely overrun.
The renewed wave of violence comes despite earlier relief following the deployment of troops from the Nigerian Army, which had temporarily curtailed bandit activities in the area.
Residents also fear a repeat of the tragic events of 2024, when two traditional rulers were assassinated by bandits in neighbouring Ipao, an incident that later spread to parts of Kogi State.
In Irele and Ijowa today, grief and anxiety loom large as families mourn, farmers abandon their fields, and communities await decisive intervention to prevent further bloodshed.
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