The rescue operation was in response to a tip-off.
The police in Enugu State, south-east Nigeria, on Tuesday, rescued four travellers who were kidnapped along Ugwogo-Opi-Nsukka Road in the state on the same day.
The police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.
Mr Ndukwe, a deputy superintendent of police, said the victims were rescued when some police operatives at about 10 a.m. trailed the hoodlums to a forest in Agbogazi-Nike, a community in Enugu East Local Government Area of the state.
The police spokesperson said the operation was in response to a tip-off that the hoodlums had kidnapped the four travellers - three men and a woman - about an hour earlier.
"The hoodlums, upon sighting the operatives, opened fire on them, but the gallant and tactical operatives returned fire, neutralising one of the hoodlums (and) forcing others to escape with gunshot wounds," he said.
He said the police had launched a manhunt to track down the fleeing suspects.
One AK-47 rifle loaded with 19 rounds of live ammunition was recovered from hoodlums, according to the police.
The Commissioner of Police in Enugu State, Kanayo Uzuegbu, has reiterated the commitment of police "to deal ruthlessly with unrepentant criminals" in the state, Mr Ndukwe said.
Mr Uzuegbu commended the police operatives for the successful operation and charged them to ensure that they track down the fleeing suspects.
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The police commissioner urged residents of the state to remain law-abiding, vigilant and report to the police any suspect seen with gunshot injury around their neighbourhood.
Increased in kidnap attacks
There have been other kidnapping incidents along Ugwogo-Opi-Nsukka Road in recent times.
Several people, including university students and government officials, have been kidnapped lately along the road in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of the state.
Suspected kidnappers, in August, killed one person and abducted many travellers along Ugwogo-Neke Odenigbo Road in Enugu East Local Government Area of the state.
Agbogazi and Ugwogo and Neke Odenigbo in Enugu East Council Area share common boundaries.
