Suspected bandits on Tuesday night carried out a coordinated attack on Oloka village in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, killing five park rangers attached to the National Park Service (NPS).
The attack, which occurred around 10:00pm, appeared to be a targeted operation against the rangers rather than a general assault on the community.
Confirming the incident to ogbomosoinsightonline.com, the Baale of Oloka, Chief Joel Olatunde Alagbe, said the assailants arrived on motorcycles and opened fire on the rangers while they were having dinner in front of their office within the village.
“Oloka shares a boundary with the National Park, so the awogbos had an office here. They were eating at about 10pm when the bandits suddenly opened fire on them,” Chief Alagbe said.
He added that one of the victims had parts of his body burnt, raising suspicion that the attackers may have also deployed explosives during the assault.
After the attack, the assailants reportedly fled into the adjoining forest, believed to be within the national park corridor.
Chief Alagbe said he immediately alerted security agencies, noting that police operatives had since responded.
A source at the Divisional Police Headquarters, Owode
Ogbomoso, confirmed the incident, adding that the matter had been escalated and was now being handled by higher authorities in Ibadan.
Residents of Oloka disclosed that the attackers had issued threats in the past, suggesting the assault was premeditated. “They had been threatening to strike for some time, but nobody expected it would happen like this,” a resident said.
A security observer described the incident as a calculated hit. “No villager was attacked, no one was kidnapped, and no property was destroyed. The victims were only the NPS officers. That shows it was deliberate,” the source noted.
The Baale of Oloka appealed to the state and federal governments to urgently strengthen security around communities bordering the national park to prevent further attacks.
He also revealed that the suspected bandits were sighted again near the village on Wednesday morning but retreated after approaching the area
