By Christopher Oji,
Shina Ogunbiyi and
Sijibomi Fatayo
There was wild jubilation at the Palace of Oba Goriola Oseni of Iba land who was released by militants who abducted him.
Oba Oseni, 74, who was abducted from his Palace on Saturday, July 16, 2016, was released after his family paid an undisclosed amount as ransom.
On the fateful day he was kidnapped, a group of armed men stormed his palace about 8pm, and shot sporadically to scare off palace residents, before taking the Oniba away. During the attack, his police orderly was shot dead, while one of his wives was injured.
A few days later, the abductors demanded N500 million as ransom. It is not certain how much was eventually paid to secure his release.
Yesterday, a report had circulated that the monarch was released about 4pm, but the abductors began to dribble the family about the spot where he would be dropped. A frantic search for him ensued around the locations specified by the kidnappers to look for him.
Sunday Sun learnt from a reliable source that when the abductors released the monarch from the hideout where he was held, he was given a boat to paddle towards the shore. The monarch paddled the boat to the shore, and then sat down to rest a little. While he was resting, some people who recognized him, brought the monarch in a chartered car close to the palace and zoomed off before people sitting outside the palace could realize what happened, for fear of being mistaken for the kidnappers and possibly lynched. He walked into the palace about 7.45 pm.
A family source told Sunday Sun: “We did not believe that he was released because, many times, we were told that they would release him and we would wait endlessly. Today we thank God that he has been released and we are celebrating. You can’t imagine the joy we have. It is as if the Oba resurrected from death.”