The Kwara State Police Command has arrested several suspects in separate investigations involving alleged child torture, murder, kidnapping, suspected ritual-related offences, ransom demands and motorcycle theft.

One of the cases emerged after a concerned resident questioned a 12-year-old girl seen buying a substance from a chemist late at night in Ilorin, leading to the discovery of alleged domestic abuse.

The arrests were disclosed by the Commissioner of Police, Ojo Adekimi, who attributed the developments to public cooperation, intelligence gathering, investigations and collaboration with local hunters and vigilante groups across the state.

According to the police, the child abuse case came to light on September 30, 2026, when a resident of the Idigba area of Adewole, Ilorin, spotted the girl buying GV solution from a nearby chemist at about 9:26 p.m.

The resident reportedly questioned why the girl was outside at that hour and purchasing the substance, prompting her to disclose the alleged abuse.

The police said the girl was allegedly beaten with an electrical wire and had her buttocks burnt with a hot coal-pot after losing N100 while hawking soya beans, locally known as beske, for her stepmother.

The suspects were identified as Babatunde Mustapha, the girl’s biological father; Abdulrahman Aisat, her stepmother; and Bashirat Abdulfatai, their neighbour.

The police said the electrical wire and coal-pot allegedly used in the assault were recovered as exhibits.

The case was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department on October 9 and referred to the Anti-Human Trafficking, Women and Children Protection Unit for further investigation.

The command said the three suspects had been arraigned and remanded at the Oke-Kura Correctional Facility.

In a separate investigation, police arrested two men, Abu Jimoh and Ayo Jimoh, over alleged grave-digging at a cemetery in Omupo, months after residents discovered that some graves had been disturbed and the heads of buried bodies were missing.

The commissioner said the incident was reported in May 2026, when residents visited the cemetery to bury a deceased person and discovered that some graves had been exhumed.

According to the police, an intelligence-led investigation led to the arrest of the two suspects at about 5 a.m. on October 8 while they were allegedly digging graves at the cemetery.

The suspects reportedly identified a herbalist, Mukaila Bello, as the alleged buyer of the missing human heads.

The command did not establish whether Bello had been arrested, adding that investigations were ongoing and the suspects would be arraigned after the conclusion of the investigation.

The police also arrested Kamalden Lukmon and AbdulGaniyu Ibrahim along Bakase Road in Alapa on October 8, following the recovery of two suspected human hands.

The command said preliminary interrogation indicated that the suspects intended to use the body parts for money-making rituals.

The suspects reportedly claimed that a vigilante member, Abdulraf Apata, had handed the body parts to them.

The police said the allegation against Apata was being investigated to establish the facts and determine whether others were involved.

The two suspects were being held by the Violent Crimes Response Unit as investigators worked to establish the origin of the suspected human remains, identify the possible victim and determine the circumstances surrounding the death linked to the investigation.

In another case, police arrested a 25-year-old man, Salihu Seidu, over the alleged murder of his father-in-law, 65-year-old Alhaji Lawal Umar, at a Fulani camp in Agah Village, Moro Local Government Area.

The command said Umar was found dead inside his tent on October 6 with multiple machete wounds. His body was subsequently released to his eldest son for burial in accordance with Islamic rites.

Following a tip-off, Seidu was arrested at Temidire Fulani Camp on October 9.

Preliminary findings indicated that the suspect allegedly visited the deceased’s camp on the night of the incident, entered his tent while other occupants were asleep, attacked him with a machete and fled.

The police said Seidu reportedly confessed to the killing during interrogation, claiming that he believed Umar was responsible for the death of his son about two weeks earlier.

A machete was listed as an exhibit, while investigations continued to determine whether other people participated in the alleged crime.

The command also announced the arrest of Abubakar Usman, popularly known as Jaye, at Jebba Cattle Market on October 11 over alleged involvement in kidnapping incidents in Oke-Ode and Oro-Ago, as well as the killing of some members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria in Oke-Ode, Ifelodun Local Government Area.

The police further linked him to a May 2025 incident in Labaka village, where four suspected kidnappers arrested by local vigilantes reportedly escaped after a group allegedly led by him arrived and fired gunshots into the air while the suspects were being interrogated.

Usman was also accused of threatening to kidnap a prominent member of a cattle-rearing association and demanding N10m.

According to the command, he went into hiding after learning that information about his alleged activities had been exposed but was eventually tracked down.

The police said he reportedly confessed to his involvement in the crimes under investigation and was providing information to help identify other suspects.

In a related case, a 25-year-old man, Saba Ismail, was arrested over an alleged telephone threat to kidnap a resident of Batakan, via Tsaragi, in Edu Local Government Area, unless N10m was paid.

The incident reportedly occurred on September 8, when the victim received a call from an unknown number demanding the ransom and directing him to deliver the money at a hideout in Iponrin, via Oke-Oyi, in Ilorin East Local Government Area.

The victim reported the threat to the police on September 10, and the case was transferred to the Anti-Kidnapping Squad in Ilorin on September 12.

Investigators reportedly traced the telephone number used to make the threat to Ismail, who allegedly confessed during interrogation.

The command said further investigations would determine whether other people were involved.

Another suspect, Ahamdu Dahiru, was arrested after intelligence indicated that he had been sighted in Kannbi, Moro Local Government Area, on October 10.

The police said Dahiru was allegedly linked to a wanted kidnapping kingpin known as Aro.

During interrogation, he reportedly confessed to leading four kidnapping operations in Eruku, Oke-Ode, Idofin and Babanla, during which large sums of money were allegedly collected.

The command said Dahiru later led a joint team of police operatives and Hausa members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria to a forest between Bani and Kaiama, where four AK-47 rifles allegedly used in the operations had reportedly been buried.

However, the firearms were no longer at the location when the team arrived.

Dahiru allegedly claimed that his accomplices, identified as Aminu, Sani, Yellow and Dogo, had moved the weapons to an unknown destination.

A bag containing suspected hard drugs, chains and a padlock believed to have been used to secure hostages was reportedly abandoned at the location.

The police said Dahiru remained in custody and was assisting investigators in efforts to locate the fleeing suspects and recover the missing firearms.

In a related development, operatives arrested Umaru Ahmadu at Bode Saadu, in Moro Local Government Area, on October 12 over alleged links to the abduction of two people from a Fulani settlement in Okeya.

The arrest reportedly followed intelligence gathering and collaboration with members of the Fulani Miyetti Allah Vigilante.

According to the command, Ahmadu admitted belonging to a kidnapping gang alongside Mohammed Abubakar Chekare, 26, who was reportedly shot dead by security forces during an operation at Babasango.

Ahmadu allegedly identified other suspected members of the group as Tukur of Kajaola, via Oke-Ode, and Ali of Madanla.

The police said he also disclosed that the gang had a pump-action rifle in Tukur’s custody, adding that efforts were ongoing to arrest the fleeing suspects and recover the firearm.

The command further announced the arrest of three men suspected of belonging to a motorcycle theft syndicate allegedly operating along the Kosa-Bani axis of the state.

The suspects were identified as Mohamed Umar, 20; Aliyu Aliyu; and Babuga Umar, 30.

The police said the arrests followed intelligence received on October 10 about repeated motorcycle thefts in the area.

Working with local hunters and members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria, operatives arrested the suspects at Dankurumi Settlement, Kosa, via Bani, and recovered a red Bajaj motorcycle.

According to the command, the suspects reportedly confessed to stealing the motorcycle from where it was parked in the Daba area of Bani.

They also allegedly identified a man known as Hanaruwa as an accomplice who helped sell stolen motorcycles.

The police said Hanaruwa remained at large and that efforts were ongoing to apprehend him and other suspected members of the syndicate.

In a separate operation, police personnel on routine patrol along the Afon axis arrested 30-year-old Musa Hussein over alleged links to kidnapping and other criminal activities in the Orile Igbon area of Oyo State.

The command said the arrest followed intelligence linking Hussein to the alleged crimes.

He was assisting the Violent Crimes Response Unit with investigations aimed at identifying and apprehending other suspected members of the group.

The police said investigations into the various cases were ongoing and that suspects would be charged to court where allegations were established and the relevant investigations concluded.