Police Storm Ibadan Hideout in Late-Night Raid, Kill Two Gunmen to Rescue Ex-Power Minister Adelabu’s Sister and 12-Year-Old Twins Unhurt

An intensive, high-stakes security operation spearheaded by the Oyo State Police Command has culminated in a major breakthrough, following the successful late-night rescue of Mrs. Olaide Busayo Adegoke John-Paul, the younger sister of former Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu and her 12-year-old twin sons, Peter and Paul.

The dramatic resolution unfolded at approximately 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, 2026, ending a tense three-day abduction saga that had put the state’s security apparatus on high alert. Mrs. John-Paul, a 43-year-old former employee of the Central Bank of Nigeria who recently relocated to Ibadan, was violently intercepted by an armed gang alongside her twin boys at about 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 3. The attackers had trailed her vehicle from her residence before flagging it down at the Elewura-Challenge axis in the Ibadan South West Local Government Area, forcing the mother and her children into a waiting getaway car at gunpoint.

Bypassing routine negotiation tracks, police intelligence units unzipped the syndicate’s operational digital footprint, tracking their movement to a temporary holding camp on the outskirts of the metropolis. Armed with precision geolocation data, elite tactical squads launched a coordinated raid on the hideout, forcing a direct and bloody confrontation with the gang.

“Our operatives executed a highly sophisticated tactical assault based on actionable intelligence loops,” State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Olayinka Ayanlade, confirmed in an emergency media brief. “Upon closing in on the camp, the kidnappers opened heavy fire on our team to resist arrest. In the ensuing fierce gun battle, two principal suspects were neutralized, while other members of the syndicate fled deep into the surrounding wilderness. We successfully recovered two operational firearms and specialized ammunition from the neutralized criminals.”

The police high command verified that Mrs. John-Paul and her twin sons were rescued entirely unhurt and have been safely reunited with their family following a mandatory medical evaluation. Meanwhile, field squads and local hunters have locked down a dragnet across the adjoining border trails, trailing heavy blood splatters to apprehend the fleeing elements of the gang believed to have escaped with life-threatening gunshot wounds.

The rapid and aggressive nature of the rescue manual has injected fresh energy into the state’s political landscape. It follows a high-profile solidarity visit paid on Friday by Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, to the Ibadan residence of Chief Adebayo Adelabu, where the governor explicitly pledged that the state’s defensive shield would remain unyielding until the victims were restored to safety.

However, security analysts note that this swift law enforcement triumph lands amid a highly complex regional crisis.

While the Adelabu family celebrates the safe return of their loved ones, public pressure continues to mount heavily on the federal cabinet and joint military squads. The public’s attention has immediately shifted back to the ongoing hostage deadlock in the northern corridor of the state, where dozens of primary and secondary school learners from the Oriire Local Government Area have spent over three weeks trapped in deep-forest trenches, leaving the academic community and transport unions waiting to see if the police can replicate this late-night tactical success to bring the stolen children home.