Missing Vanguard reporter found dead after three weeks

A journalist with the Vanguard Newspaper, Tordue Salem, who was declared missing on October 13 in Abuja, has been found dead.

The late Salem who covered the House of Representatives in the National Assembly, reportedly went missing on Wednesday, 13th October, 2021, after he closed from work, and boarded a public taxi with a female relative to a relaxation spot known as B.J’s Garden situated close to a Total filling station, opposite Nigeria Police Force Headquarters in the capital city.

It was gathered that from the garden, Salem reportedly flagged another cab for the lady who left before him, after he informed her that he was going to Area 8, Garki.

And that was the last time Salem was seen alive until his remains were recovered on Thursday.

According to his employers, the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) had swung into action on 16th October after the mysterious disappearance of the late Salem was reported to it.

It was also reported that a suspect identified as Prince Enyenihi, has been arrested after a failed attempt to extort the family of the deceased by posing as his abductor.

The suspect was said to have contacted Salem’s wife on October 26, via a text message demanding for the sum of N100 million as ransom to be paid for her husband’s release.

Part of the text message read:

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“If you don’t pay, Tordue will be killed in seven days. For more information, call this number.”

The text message also contained an account number the money should be paid into.

This was followed by a call with a concealed number to Salem’s wife the next day.

Following further calls and text messages, the Police who had been notified, swung into action by first de-encrypting the number and traced its owner to a lady in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

However, during interrogation, the lady who owns a skin care outfit denied culpability, stating rather, that a particular number had been calling her line since October 26, 2021.

Security operatives, upon further investigations, traced the calls to Enyenihi, who is a neighbour to the skin care outfit owner and he was arrested on November 5.

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