Family panics as kidnappers abduct journalist in Ogun state

Some yet-to-be-identified persons have reportedly kidnapped a journalist and human rights activist, Oluwatosin Oshibanjo, in Ogun State. 

It was gathered that Oshibanjo was abducted in his Ijebu-Ode home on Tuesday, October 15, 2024. 

The journalist’s mother, Tokunbo Bakre, said that the abduction came after Tosin had intervened in a human rights violation case involving a lady and a pastor.

Bakre told Punch on Wednesday that the said lady had accused the pastor of allegedly impregnating her and forcing her to carry out abortion several times and she had refused the last attempt to coerce her into it.

The lady was said to have delivered a baby which she claimed the pastor was responsible for but the pastor reportedly denied responsibility. 

Bakre narrated further that Tosin had published the alleged dispute between the lady and the said pastor and made efforts to get the pastor to react to the issue.

She noted that she was informed that her son was abducted after some men swooped on him while he was in a telephone conversation with his wife and took him to an unknown destination.

“My son had intervened in an issue involving a lady and one pastor who also claimed to be a doctor. The lady said the pastor impregnated her several times and forced her to have abortions. She said she refused to abort the last pregnancy she had with the pastor which had created issues between her and him,” she explained. 

“My son published the incident on his platform. To my surprise, I was informed  that some persons had kidnapped my son while he was on a telephone conversation with his wife and I suspect his abduction was because of the issue of the lady that he intervened in.”

She added that the incident had thrown the family into a panic mood as several efforts made to locate his whereabouts had proved abortive as his mobile phone remained unreachable since his abduction.

“We have made several efforts to locate his whereabouts but he could not be reached. This has caused tension in the family because we don’t know the condition he is in at the moment and what the abductors could do to him.

“I am appealing to the authorities to help me locate and rescue my son,” Bakre said.

A senior police officer confirmed the abduction to the publication in a telephone conversation on Wednesday.

“Yes, I am aware of the incident. It was reported to the police but I cannot speak further on it,” the police officer said.