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By Favour Ugochukwu
Kidnappers have freed six abducted victims after their families paid a N60 million ransom.
The kidnappers released the victims on Tuesday after the ransom was picked up at a Commercial Bank, Akpakpava Branch in Benin City.
The victims were among those abducted on September 5, when seven armed kidnappers, led by a runaway soldier from the Nigerian Army and identified as Fulani herdsmen ,among other six kidnappers, ambushed a Toyota Hiace bus and a Toyota Camry along the Benin–Akure Road.
Gunshots rang through the air as the criminals dragged their captives into the nearby forest.
Edo State Police Command confirmed that 16 passengers in the Edo Line Motor bus escaped, but six unlucky victims were held hostage until their families sourced and delivered the ransom.
The incident occurred between Ogbojobo and Osasinwoba, just a few meters from police checkpoints and only 10 kilometers away from the Edo State Police Command Headquarters.
The victims :Sandra Omoregie, Ruth Igbinovia, Glory Ehizokhale, Kingsley Obasohan, Samuel Uwagboe, and Lady Grace Okaighe (a Superintendent of Police serving in Lagos) — recounted their ordeal.
They revealed that the ransom was collected by a man identified as Mr. Abu, who acted as the gang’s point man and maintained direct communication with their families throughout the negotiations.
Kingsley Obasohan, visibly angry, lashed out at the security agencies, especially the Edo State Police Command.
“It’s unfortunate that Nigeria has descended to the abyss of no return with all the security agencies, particularly the Nigeria Police Force’s total failure to rescue and save the citizens.
“I am disappointed in our security agencies.In this time and age, kidnappers are moving freely in our forests and even in Benin City in broad daylight, making ransom calls and moving around with registered car numbers plates ,while the police are only content with harassing yahoo boys on the streets,”he said.
The release of the hostages has once again sparked widespread debate about ransom payments, with many warning that it fuels the kidnapping economy and strengthens criminal groups operating across Nigeria.
