Kwara State Police Command has rescued 108 detainees at an illegal rehabilitation center located at Gaa Odota in Ilorin West Local Government Area of the state. The police revealed that some of the detainees had been held illegally in the centre for more than five years.
THISDAY checks revealed that the detainees, who were mainly children, women and young adults, were rescued by the state police command following an intelligence tip off.
The detainees, who were being kept in an unhygienic condition, were alleged to have been brought to the center by their parents who were said to be paying monthly stipends to the proprietor of the centre for the care of their wards.
Speaking with journalists on the operation, Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, said the command got an intelligent report on the activities of the owner of the illegal centre.
Egbetokun explained that most of them have been kept in an unhygienic condition, adding that many of the detainees who were afflicted with diseases could not receive medical care for their ailments.
He also noted that some of the inhabitant of the center were chained and under feed.
The police commissioner maintained that the command would carry out more surveillance to uncover such centres in other parts of the state.
Egbetokun also assured the victims that the command would take necessary action to re-unite them with their families.
Some of the rescued detainees told journalists in Ilorin yesterday that, “we were chained in legs and without food. Besides, we were kept in overcrowded rooms without light and beaten without any reasons.”
The owner of the centre, Alhaji Abdulraheem Owotutu, explained that those found at his rehabilitation centre were brought by their families for treatment and promised to assist the police with information on how to contact the “detainees” families.
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