Metro
Police arrest soldier, others in military uniforms in Anambra for kidnapping
A Lance Corporal in the Nigerian Army, Ojiegbe Obinna, has been arrested by the police in Ekwulobia, Aquata Local Government Area of Anambra State for alleged kidnapping.
The police also arrested two other suspected kidnappers in military uniform in Ogidi, Idemili North Local Government Area of the state.
Their arrests was disclosed by the state Police Public Relations Officer, Haruna Mohammed, in Awka on Saturday, adding that the use of military uniform for kidnapping has become a new trend of crime in the state.
He said: “We enjoin the public to report any suspicious persons to the nearest police station or through the command’s emergency numbers.”
According to Mohammed, the army corporal and his accomplices kidnapped one Uchenna Ezeonu but the police trailed the kidnappers and apprehended them after receiving a distress call.
“There was a distress call along Isuofia road in the Aguata LGA of Anambra State that three persons in military uniform around Ekwulobia roundabout abducted one Uchenna Ezeonu of Omeke village and whisked him away to an unknown destination.
Read also: EL-ZAKZAKY: Shiite members waylay Buhari in Abuja
“Following the distress call police operatives, attached to Operation Puff Adder, in conjunction with joint patrol teams, rushed to the scene and cordoned off the entire area in search of the hoodlums along the bush path by Uyo-Eke market road.
“Consequently, three suspects in military attire, who abducted the victim, were rounded up inside the bush”, Mohammed said.
The police spokesperson, who gave the names of Obinna’s accomplices as Obasi Peter and Benjamin Nicholas, said the victim was rescued unhurt.
He also revealed that Obinna served with the Nigerian Army and deployed to 101 Special Forces Battalion, Maiduguri, Borno State.
“He was subsequently handed over to Onitsha Military Cantonment for discreet investigation while the remaining two suspects in military vest were discovered to be fake soldiers”, he added.
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...