A kidnapped teacher at Community High School, Ahoro-Esinele in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State Michael Oyedokun has been killed by his abductors.
A video allegedly released by the kidnappers on Sunday showed Mr Oyedokun tied up before he was killed. The video surfaced on Telegram on Monday.
The incident has raised concerns over the safety of other victims still in captivity.
Residents of the community, families of the victims and indigenes have called on security agencies and the Oyo State Government to intensify efforts to rescue those still being held.
Confirming the incident on Monday, Governor Seyi Makinde’s special adviser on media Suleimon Olanrewaju said the governor had expressed condolences to the family of the deceased teacher.
He said the government would continue efforts to secure the release of the remaining victims through both military and non-military measures.
Mr Olanrewaju also said about six suspects linked to the kidnapping had been arrested.
According to him, members of the military, Amotekun Corps and local vigilantes involved in rescue operations lost their lives after encountering Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted by the abductors.
He added that injured security personnel were responding to treatment and that the government would cover their medical care.
Olanrewaju appealed to relatives of the victims, religious groups and other concerned persons to remain patient, assuring them that efforts were ongoing to reunite the abducted persons with their families.
“We know that seven teachers were abducted. Unfortunately, we received a video this morning showing that one of the teachers, said to be the mathematics teacher, was killed,” he said.
He added that security agencies had recorded some progress in the investigation.
“From information available from the Commissioner of Police, about six individuals have been arrested within the locality.
“Some of them, we believe, may be informants or people handling logistics for the terrorists. Also, three persons of interest have been arrested by another security outfit in the state,” he said.
Gunmen invaded the school on Friday, May 15, abducting the principal, other teachers and several students.
The incident came weeks after a failed kidnap attempt along the Ibadan-Ijebu road in which a traveller was killed, further raising concerns about insecurity in parts of Oyo State and across the country.
