The Oyo State Police Command has commenced an investigation into the attack on the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Passport Office in Ogbomoso, where armed hoodlums allegedly assaulted officers and stole a G3 rifle and other valuables.
According to the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ayanlade Olayinka, the incident occurred around 8:45 p.m. on Tuesday when armed men invaded the facility after scaling the perimeter fence from the rear.
The officer in charge of the passport office reportedly raised an alarm, prompting the deployment of operatives from the Command Monitoring Unit and surveillance teams to the scene.
Preliminary investigations indicated that about five hoodlums gained access to the premises through a section of the rear fence bordering a vast bushland. The suspects reportedly attacked two Immigration officers on night duty with sticks and other dangerous weapons before making away with a G3 rifle assigned to the office and its ammunition.
The attackers also allegedly stole a mobile phone belonging to one of the officers, a generating set and a motorcycle battery before escaping through the same route.
Police said the injured officers had received medical attention and were in stable condition.
The Command disclosed that surveillance and tactical teams had intensified operations in and around the area, including combing adjoining bushes and suspected escape routes, to apprehend the perpetrators and recover the stolen firearm and other items.
It added that intelligence assets and informants had been activated to generate information that could lead to the arrest of the suspects.
The Commissioner of Police, Oyo State Command, CP Abimbola Ayodeji Olugbenga, directed all operational and intelligence units to deploy available resources towards ensuring the prompt arrest of those responsible.
The statement further revealed that the Commissioner of Police and the State Comptroller of the Nigeria Immigration Service in Oyo State had constituted a joint task team to strengthen coordination and enhance efforts aimed at apprehending the suspects.
The police reassured residents of Ogbomoso and its environs of their commitment to protecting lives and property and urged members of the public to provide useful information that could assist ongoing investigations.
