Scores of residents on Tuesday blocked the Jobele end of the Ibadan–Oyo Expressway in Afijio Local Government Area of Oyo State, protesting rising cases of kidnapping, banditry and other criminal activities in their communities.

The protest disrupted both human and vehicular movement along the busy highway for several hours.

According to residents, the demonstration was triggered by a recent attempted abduction in one of the communities in the area.

One of the protesters said suspected kidnappers invaded the community on Monday night and attempted to abduct a woman.

“Yesterday (Monday), the suspected kidnappers invaded one of our communities in an attempt to abduct a lady. She narrowly escaped by scaling the fence,” the resident said.

“Even though she escaped, she received a deep machete cut on one of her hands. This is not the first time such an incident has happened in this area.”

The protesters insisted they would not leave the road until security agencies take concrete steps to guarantee the safety of residents.

“We are not going to leave the road until our safety is guaranteed by the relevant security agencies,” they said.

Reacting to the development, the Oyo State Police Command said officers had been deployed to the area to restore order.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Olayinka Ayanlade, confirmed that the Commissioner of Police had directed security operatives to intervene.

“The Commissioner of Police has sent both the Area Commander and the Divisional Police Officer to the spot to restore normalcy on the road,” Ayanlade said.