By Ade Oyeyemi
The Osun State Police Command has commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the reported abduction of Shakiru Babatunde, a media aide to Governor Ademola Adeleke.
The state government disclosed this on Wednesday through the governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, amid reports alleging that the aide may have staged his own kidnapping in an attempt to obtain money from government officials.
According to the report, the incident occurred in Ede, Osun State, last week, with Babatunde allegedly contacting government officials through a third party and demanding ransom.
The report further claimed that the alleged scheme was uncovered after one of the officials contacted the police, leading to the discovery of the aide at a purported hideout.
However, the state government said the matter had been formally reported to the police from the outset and that the Anti-Kidnapping Squad was handling the investigation.
Rasheed said Babatunde’s alleged abduction was reported immediately after the aide sent a message claiming that he had been kidnapped.
“It would be recalled that when the media aide sent a text message that he had been kidnapped, an incident report was immediately lodged with the police under the instruction of the Chief of Staff,” he said.
He explained that the case was subsequently referred to the Anti-Kidnapping Squad of the Osun State Police Command to establish the circumstances surrounding the reported incident.
The governor’s spokesperson also rejected claims that the Chief of Staff, Kazeem Akinleye, or other senior government officials were attempting to frustrate the police investigation.
“It was therefore a falsehood from the pit of hell to assert that the Chief of Staff or any state official was trying to prevent the police from conducting an investigation into a matter which the state government originally reported to the police service,” Rasheed said.
He equally dismissed reports alleging that government officials had attempted to induce the police financially to suppress the investigation.
“Nobody in the government is attempting to bribe the police and the police have not received any kobo from state officials as libellously asserted in a publication,” he stated.
The government said it would await the outcome of the police investigation before deciding on further action.
Rasheed urged members of the public to disregard unverified claims surrounding the incident, stressing that the appropriate law enforcement authorities had been allowed to handle the matter.
“The police are currently investigating the matter while the state government is also waiting for the outcome of the investigation for further action,” he said.
The development comes as competing accounts continue to emerge over what happened to the governor’s aide, with the police investigation expected to establish the circumstances surrounding the reported abduction and determine whether any offence was committed.
The state government maintained that Governor Adeleke and his officials would allow the police to carry out their statutory duties without interference.
