The management of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, has condemned the recent armed robbery attack on some of its students at a private hostel in the town.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the university’s Public Relations Officer, Abiodun Olarewaju, described the incident as “unfortunate and unacceptable.”

According to him, the attack occurred on Monday, October 20, 2025, when armed men invaded Oreoluwa Hostel, located within Moremi Estate in Ile-Ife metropolis. The assailants reportedly robbed the students of their valuables and injured several of them during the one-hour operation, which lasted from 10:35 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Olarewaju commended the Students’ Union officials for their swift intervention in taking the injured victims to the University Health and Medical Centre, where they received prompt treatment.

He confirmed that three students sustained varying degrees of injuries.

“At the Health Centre, three of the students who sustained deep machete cuts to the head and both hands were identified and promptly treated,” he said.

The victims were identified as Ogedengbe Emmanuel Oluwafemi and Emmanuel Akinribiye, both Part Four students of the Department of Management and Accounting, and Olalekan David Okemiga, a final-year student of the Department of Mathematics.

Olarewaju added that Okemiga was beaten with a machete but fortunately did not suffer deep wounds.

The university’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Adebayo Simeon Bamire, strongly condemned the attack and commended the prompt response of officers from the Nigerian Police, A Division, Ile-Ife, and Oke-Otubu Division, Modakeke.

He urged security agencies, particularly the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services (DSS), to increase patrols around student residential areas to ensure safety.

“We wish the injured students a speedy recovery and express gratitude to God for sparing their lives,” Bamire said.

The Vice-Chancellor also appealed to well-meaning Nigerians and philanthropists to assist in building more hostels within the campus, to enhance student safety and effective monitoring.

Meanwhile, the Osun State Police Command confirmed the incident through its spokesperson, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, who assured that efforts are ongoing to track down and apprehend the perpetrators.