By Demola Akinyemi, Ilorin
There is confusion in Ile Ere community of Ifelodun local area of Kwara State as the traditional ruler, HRH Oba Simeon Olaonipekun, and one of his children Olaolu a serving NYSC member, were abducted Wednesday evening by gang of bandits during a violent attack on the royal palace.
Vanguard reliably gathered that eight gunmen stormed the palace, at about 8:30pm, sporadically shooting into the air and forced their way into the inner rooms to kidnap the king and his son who was with him.
A family source who was present at the palace during the incident told journalists that the assailants appeared to have come specifically for the monarch and his wife.
“I noticed some strange movements outside around 8:00pm and immediately alerted those inside. We began locking doors and switching off lights, but once they realised this, they started shooting,” the source said.
According to him, the gunmen broke down the palace doors with their weapons and demanded to see the king.
“They gained entrance and requested for the Kabiyesi, and he came out. They were also asking for his wife Felicia Olaonipekun, but she had already been hit by a bullet in the arm,” he said.
The source added that Olaolu, one of the monarch’s sons who is currently undergoing his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme, was also seized after coming out of hiding.
“There were about 10 of us in the palace at the time, as we had come to spend the holiday with Kabiyesi. Everyone was hiding during the attack.
“After they left, we rushed the Olori to the hospital that same night,” he said.
He noted that the community vigilante group could not repel the attackers, as only two members were on duty and were overpowered by the gunmen’s superior firepower.
“The vigilantes could not do much because they were just two on duty. The leader of the attackers spoke very good English and they came straight to the palace. They did not attack any other place in the town,” the source added.
He said the incident was reported to several police formations, including the Owu Isin and Ijara Isin divisions, as well as the joint local security network in Ikosin, while neighbouring traditional rulers were also alerted.
As of the time of filing this report, there was no official information on contact with the abductors, while the community appealed to the state government and security agencies to intensify efforts to secure the safe release of the monarch and his son.
Efforts to get reaction from Kwara State Police Command at press time failed as the Public Relations Officer, Ejire Adeyemi, did not receive several calls to her line.
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