From Ben Dunno, Warri
The Delta State Police Commissioner Olufemi Abaniwonda has announced a significant breakthrough in the fight against kidnapping, armed robbery, and cultism, with the killing of four suspected kidnappers in Delta North.
At a press briefing in Asaba, the commissioner disclosed that the operation, conducted on April 11, led to the recovery of three AK-47 rifles and 90 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition from a hideout along the Asaba/Agbor express road.
The operation followed the kidnapping of a medical doctor and his driver in Issele-Uku, Aniocha North, on April 6, with a N15 million ransom paid. Abaniwonda directed the CP-Special Assignment Team to track the gang, resulting in the arrest of the syndicate’s leader, Abubakar Usman, alias “Shehu,” on April 10. Usman confessed to multiple crimes, including the kidnap and murder of Godwin Anuka’s wife and daughter in Ogwashi-Uku and the kidnapping of realtor Esther Ojoh in Ibusa, whose body was found on March 25.
On April 11, Usman led police to the gang’s forest hideout between Okpanam and Issele-Asagba. He raised an alarm and fled, joining his gang, who engaged police in a fierce gunfight. Four suspects, including Usman, were fatally wounded and confirmed dead at Ogwashi-Uku General Hospital.
Abaniwonda also reported the arrest of a gunrunner, Peter James, on March 11, with three AK-47 rifles and 3,120 rounds of ammunition recovered from a modified Toyota Camry in Oghara.
The commissioner praised the team’s bravery, noting ongoing investigations to dismantle remaining syndicate networks.
Local communities, including Ogwashi-Uku and Ibusa, have expressed relief, though some residents question the ethnic profiling of suspects as Fulani herdsmen without evidence.