Nine suspected kidnappers have been arrested after they pulled a
fast one on the families of their victims.
The suspects were alleged to have demanded for N50million ransom
after they abducted Reverend
Mrs. Louis Ubah and Engineer Chika Ezenwa.
After series of phone calls between families of the victims, the
kidnappers grudgingly agreed to accept N2.5m ransom.
Two brother-in-laws of Louise, accepted to go and drop off the
money at the designated venue given by the kidnappers. The brothers were
however kidnapped and another ransom demanded before they were released.
The gang’s downfall started after one of their gang members, Daniel
Gabriel, 33, a taxi driver, was arrested.
According to the police, Gabriel’s arrest was made possible
because of credible intelligence gathering.
He was arrested by operatives of the Inspector-General of Police,
(IGP), Mr. Ibrahim Idris’s Special Intelligence Response Team (IRT), led by a
Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), Mr. Abba Kyarri.
Gabriel was later used as bait to catch other members of the
gang. They were picked up at different areas in Port Harcourt within five
hours.
Those presently in IRT custody are; Daniel Gabriel, Alaso Igodo 25, Akodi Aselemi 34, Ayibinmotei
Livinus 25, Anikuroka
Marshal 33, Biebele Elijah,
34,
Efiye Anda, 34, Daniel Lessor, 31 and Isaac Reuben, 27.
The leader of the gang, Blackie, is still at large.
The kidnappers are alleged to be responsible for most of the abductions
recorded within GRA Phase 2, Port-Harcourt main town, Borokiri General Area and
YKC axis of Woji. During interrogation,
the suspects allegedly confessed to have participated in 15 kidnappings in
Rivers State.
Exhibits recovered from them includes one AK47 rifle with
bridge number 0731, four AK47 magazines with 42 live ammunition, four face
masks and a green Mazda Salon operational car.
The police source said: “On August 10, 2016, the gang kidnapped one Reverend Louis and Engineer
Ezenwa. They were both abducted in Louis’s shop and whisked away to
Indoki Estate Waterfront. But on their way, they had encounter with a team of
policemen. The kidnappers injured Inspector David Ijosi and
Corporal Dike Ledee. Bullets hit the policemen on their legs and
necks. The kidnappers escaped with their victims into the Isaka creeks in
Okrika, from where they demanded for a ransom of N50m from families of the
victims.”
The police said that the woman’s husband, Bishop Prince Ubah, begged
the kidnappers to reduce the ransom. After much pleading, it was reduced to N2.8m. On
August, 25, 2016, Prince sent two of his brothers, Onyeka Ani and Pastor
Okezie Akara, to take the ransom to the kidnappers.
The police said: “When the two brothers got to the drop-off point,
they were abducted. The kidnappers thereafter released Louis and Ezenwa. They demanded
for another N1m ransom from Prince in other to release his brothers. N750, 000
was eventually paid to them. Sometimes
in the same August, the gang went to YKC Junction in Woji Town, Port
Harcourt, and kidnapped one Nkechi. They took the woman to Kula community in
Akukotoru Local Government Area of Rivers State.”
The police said that the woman was kept for two weeks in the
kidnappers’ den, and later released after a ransom of N2m was paid.
In the month of September 2016, the gang also went to Niger Street
and kidnapped a man known as Coachie,
He was taken to Idoki Estate Waterfront, where they boarded a
speed boat, which took them to their Isaka camp. The man was kept in their den
for two weeks until his family coughed up N2.5m for his release.
The gang’s last operation, before IRT operatives swooped on them
was in October, after they abducted one Mrs. Okotie, opposite Royal House of
Grace Church.
The woman told them she had just put to bed and was not feeling too
good. But they didn’t listen to her. Unfortunately for the kidnappers, their car
broke down and their gang leader, Blackie, phoned for another car. They were heading
to Ornage Waterside, when police intercepted them. They fled at the sight of the
policemen. They abandoned the woman in the car. They also left one of their
rifles.
“A few days after the botched kidnap of Mrs. Okotie, IRT
operatives trailed Daniel, the taxi driver and arrested him,” said the police
source.
The source continued: “When we got to his house, we arrested five
of the gang members. From there, the operatives headed to Enugu Waterfront,
where we arrested Anikuroka Marshal, their armorer. They also identified
Diobele Elijah and Akodi Aselemi as the gang’s spies. These men used to go
around town, scouting for victims. The suspects confessed to have three
AK47 rifles and two English pistols.”
Gabriel, married with two children, said that he was a cab driver
in Port Harcourt, but turned to kidnapping when his income couldn’t sustain
him, his wife and kids. He moved his wife and kids to his village, returned to
PH and went full time into kidnapping.
Remembering how he got involved with the kidnappers, Gabriel said:
“I met my gang members in March 2016. I was plying the Aba Road, looking for
passengers when they stopped me. They asked me to take them to Borikiri
area of Port-Harcourt Town. They paid me more than I demanded. I told them I
wanted to know more about them. The leader, who sat with me in the front,
gave me his phone number. He said he would like me to work with them.
“A few days later, they invited me to a hotel in Borikiri. They
opened up to me on what they were into. In April, Blackie called; he said I
should meet him in his hotel. When I got there, he was with his men. They were
preparing for an operation. They brought out two bags containing rifles, dumped
them into my car and we moved to GRA area in Port Harcourt.”
They were heading to the location, when they got a call from their
informant that their target had left the place.
They were going back to their base, when they spotted a man; he
was driving an expensive looking car. They kidnapped, took him to Indoki Estate
Waterfront and later transported him via a speed boat to their camp, which is
across the river.
Gabriel stated: “We did several kidnappings after I joined the
gang, but in August, our second in command, called me. He said that our informant
had a job for us. We went and kidnapped a woman; but on our way, my car
developed a fault. Blackie called for another taxi. We transferred the woman
into it. But on the waterside, police intercepted us and rescued the woman. One
of our rifles was recovered by the police, but we all escaped. I was later
arrested.”
Another suspect, Anda, a speed boat operator, said he used to be
paid N200, 000 for ferrying the kidnappers and their victims to their camp across
the river.
His words: “I was formerly into oil bunkering, but the military
destroyed where we used to cook our oil. I had nothing doing, so my friends
invited me to Port Harcourt, to join them in kidnapping.”
On his part, Elijah confessed that he had just joined the gang. He
stated that it was his boss, whom he identified as Elvis that lured him into kidnapping.
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