TROOPS OF OPERATION ENDURING PEACE RESCUE RETIRED COLONEL FROM KIDNAPPERS IN PLATEAU STATE

opeolumartinJanuary 6, 202603 mins

Jos, Plateau State
5 January 2026

Troops of Operation ENDURING PEACE (OPEP) have successfully rescued a retired senior officer of the Nigerian Army, Colonel Ajanaku (Rtd), following his abduction by unidentified gunmen in Bassa Local Government Area (LGA) of Plateau State.
The retired officer was kidnapped in the early hours of 5 January 2026, at about 0045 hours, from his residence opposite the Salvation Army Church along Rukuba Road, Bassa LGA. Upon receipt of the distress call, troops of Sectors 1 and 3, Operation ENDURING PEACE, immediately mobilised and trailed the kidnappers along their withdrawal route through the Wildlife Park axis.

The troops, working in close collaboration with the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) Tracking Team and local vigilantes, sustained intensive search-and-rescue operations, combing suspected criminal hideouts across caves and rocky high grounds within the general area.
Later in the day, at about 1400 hours, the kidnappers contacted the wife of the abducted retired officer and demanded a ransom of Two Hundred Million Naira (₦200,000,000.00). As a result of the overwhelming pressure mounted by the pursuing troops, the kidnappers issued threats to kill the victim if search operations were not halted.

In response, troops tactically switched to covert operations, which culminated in the successful rescue of Colonel Ajanaku (Rtd) at about 1730 hours on 5 January 2026, at the outskirts of the Rafiki Axis, Bassa LGA, Plateau State, without the payment of any ransom.

The rescued officer is currently undergoing medical examination at the Operation ENDURING PEACE Medical Centre and is reported to be in stable condition. He will subsequently be debriefed to provide vital intelligence to support ongoing follow-up operations.

Meanwhile, troops of Operation ENDURING PEACE have continued aggressive combing operations within surrounding forests to apprehend the fleeing kidnappers and dismantle their criminal network.

The Nigerian Army, through Operation ENDURING PEACE, reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the protection of lives and property and assures the public of its resolve to deny criminal elements freedom of action across the Joint Operations Area.