Men of the Nigerian Army were engaged in a gun duel with suspected kidnappers operating along the Owo-Ifon Expressway in Ondo State around midnight on Thursday.
The soldiers, ostensibly on patrol along the expressway, reportedly rammed into the kidnappers who had barricaded the road, while attempting to abduct some travellers.
The Public Relations Officer of 32 Artillery Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Owena Cantonment, based in Akure, the state capital, Captain Ayorinde Omojokun confirmed the incident to Channels Television in a telephone conversation.
According to Omojokun, the soldiers were on patrol in the area, and on sighting the soldiers, the hoodlums opened fire on them while the soldiers responded too.
He disclosed that when the hoodlums could no longer resist the soldiers gunfire, they subsequently abandoned the victims and fled into a nearby forest with gunshots injuries.
Some of the soldiers too were said to have sustained injuries and are presently receiving treatment in a nearby hospital.
The Owo/Ifon highway has been a major route where kidnappers operate often in Ondo State.
A first class traditional ruler in Ondo State, the Olufon of Ifon, Oba Israel Adeusi was shot and killed while traveling on the road in November.
