Gunmen have shot dead the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State, Hon. Ishaq Yunusa, along the Itobe-Ochadamu Expressway. The assailants also abducted a co-occupant of his vehicle during the ambush.
The attack occurred around 5:00 PM on Thursday, August 27, 2026, near Ojuwo Olijo in Ofu Local Government Area while the party chairman was returning from Lokoja, the state capital.
According to eyewitnesses, armed assailants emerged from the surrounding bush and opened fire indiscriminately on oncoming motorists.
Responding security teams later discovered an abandoned blue Toyota Corolla (registration number GWA 636 CH) on the highway containing the body of the slain politician. Another passenger traveling with Yunusa was forcefully taken into the forest by the gunmen.
Confirming the incident on Friday, August 28, the Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, stated that security personnel have launched a combined manhunt to rescue the victim and track down the perpetrators.
”The driver, identified as Hon. Ishaq Yunusa, was found dead in the vehicle, while another occupant was taken into the bush by the assailants,” ASP Afusat said.
“The command, in collaboration with other security agencies, has intensified operations along the affected corridor, with personnel combing the surrounding forest to rescue the abducted victim and apprehend the assailants.”
The deceased’s body has been evacuated to Grimard Catholic Hospital in Anyigba for autopsy. Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police for Kogi State, CP Naziru Bello Kankarofi, ordered immediate, sustained tactical operations along the highway and appealed to local residents and motorists to report suspicious activity.
