Ekiti: Fear grips families, community as kidnappers refuse to release victims after collecting ransom

From Priscilla Ediare, Ado Ekiti

Aisegba-Ekiti, Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State, is currently enveloped in fear over kidnappers’ refusal to free the victims in their captivity after collecting ransom.

The development has thrown the family members and friends of the victims into confusion as they weren’t sure of the well being of the victims.

The abductees are Fagbemi Abayomi from Ilupeju-Ekiti, in Ekiti State and Ojo Musa from Kogi State.

The victims who were residing in Aisegba Ekiti, were kidnapped at gunpoint between Ilu-Omoba and Aisegba Ekiti, Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State few weeks ago.

Wife of one of the victims, Mrs Fagbemi, explained that the abductors contacted her on her mobile phone to demand for a ransom of N15 million which was later reduced to N10 million, but the abductors eventually agreed to collect one million naira from her to free her husband while they agreed to collect two million from the family members of the other victim.

Mrs Fagbemi said it became a surprise to the two families when the reverse of what they envisaged played out, lamenting that after they had paid the ransom, the victims were not released, adding they experienced hardship to raise the money.

“It is now two weeks after we paid the ransom, my husband has not been freed. This is eliciting serious threat, panic and tension in our town and family.

“Most traumatising was the fact that we have not been able to reach him on telephone for one and half weeks now. The phone number the kidnappers were using to reach out to us had been switched off.”

The families appealed to the Amotekun Corps and the Ekiti State Police Command to intensify their searches around Aisegba-Agbado-Imes- Irun and Aisegba-Agbado-Ise forests to rescue the victims from captivity.

When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the Ekiti State Police Command, DSP Sunday Abutu promised to get back, while the Commander of Amotekun Corps, Brig-Gen Olu Adewa (Rtd) said “the command is making frantic efforts to rescue the victims.”