Police in Osun are investigating allegations surrounding the reported abduction of Governor Ademola Adeleke’s media aide, Shakiru Babatunde.
Chief Press Secretary to Governor Adeleke, Olawale Rasheed, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Osogbo.
The development is coming amid claims that the incident may have been staged to obtain money from government officials.
This followed a media report alleging that Babatunde staged his own kidnap and contacted government officials through a third party to seek ransom.
According to the report, the alleged incident occurred in Ede, Osun State, last week, while the aide was said to have remained at a hideout during the purported abduction.
The publication alleged that the matter came to light after a government official contacted over the purported kidnapping alerted the police, leading to the reported discovery of Babatunde.
It also claimed that officers attached to the Dugbe Division in Osogbo arrested the aide, with a source alleging that he confessed to staging the incident after being taken to the police station.
But the Osun State Government has said the police are investigating the matter and denied allegations that senior government officials are attempting to interfere with the process.
The CPS to the governor said an incident report was immediately lodged with the police after Babatunde sent a message claiming that he had been kidnapped.
Rasheed said the matter was subsequently reported to the Anti-Kidnapping Squad of the Osun State Police Command, which commenced investigation into the circumstances surrounding the reported abduction.
“It would be recalled that when the media aide sent a text message that he had been kidnapped, an incident report was immediately lodged with the police under the instruction of the Chief of Staff,” Rasheed said.
He added that the involvement of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad demonstrated that the state government had referred the matter to the appropriate law enforcement authorities for investigation.
The CPS also denied reports that the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Alhaji Kazeem Akinleye, and other senior officials were attempting to stop the police from investigating the matter.
“It was therefore a falsehood from the pit of hell to assert that the Chief of Staff or any state official was trying to prevent the police from conducting an investigation into a matter which the state government originally reported to the police service,” he said.
Rasheed also rejected allegations that government officials attempted to bribe the police to suppress the investigation, describing such claims as unfounded and baseless.
“Nobody in the government is attempting to bribe the police and the police have not received any kobo from state officials as libelously asserted in a publication,” he said.
He said the state government was awaiting the outcome of the police investigation and would take further action based on its findings, while urging members of the public to disregard misinformation surrounding the case.
“The police are currently investigating the matter while the state government is also waiting for the outcome of the investigation for further action,” Rasheed said.
The government spokesperson maintained that Governor Adeleke and senior officials remained committed to allowing law enforcement agencies to carry out their statutory responsibilities without interference.
