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From Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
These days, innocent Nigerians are being implicated in real and hoax kidnapping cases, leading to wrongful arrests, detentions, arraignments before courts of law, and imprisonment.
The suspects implicating them have been using fake identities, deception, and illegal means to carry out their schemes. As gathered, the implications of wrongful arrests and imprisonment are dire, as the mental and emotional trauma could lead to lifelong scars for the innocent people.
Also, innocent individuals could lose their jobs, businesses and families while locked up for crimes they did not commit. The publicity around such cases could also affect their reputations and future prospects, which makes it essential that investigations and arrests are carried out judiciously and based on factual evidence.
The Oyo State Police Command cracked a recent case in which the trio of Babatunde Adebayo, 57; Stephen Adesope, 34; and Adeleke Adejoke, 33; were framed up for kidnapping, which they knew nothing about. This case is believed to be just one example of how gangs of criminals have been implicating innocent people for kidnapping for pecuniary gains.
Fortunately for the three of them, the individual who implicated them came forward and confessed that the whole thing was staged. The confession led to the arrest of the five individuals who worked together to implicate the innocent people.
The five suspects that worked together to implicate them are Olorunfemi Olakunle, 38; Adams Danjuma, 37; Amusat Ibrahim Alaba, 47; Taiwo Segun, 37; Azubuike Agu, 38 years.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Dr. Adebola Hamzat, paraded the five suspects before journalists at Eleyele, Ibadan, the state capital, some days ago. But the suspects opened up on how they have been framing up innocent Nigerians through transferring money to the bank accounts of the innocent people. The suspects also claim that they send airtime to the phone numbers of those they implicate without the knowledge of the receivers.
The police boss in the state said the case was initiated through a petition by Olorunfemi Olakunle, who claimed that he had been kidnapped and held for ransom. He claimed that while he was held, money was transferred from his account and his phone was used to purchase airtime. The police arrested Adebayo, Adesope, and Adejoke in Lagos based on the false information.
According to Hamzat, “This case references an ongoing investigation initiated through petition by one Olorunfemi Olakunle Isaiah ‘m’, to the Oyo State Police Command on May 24, 2023, which was later revealed through investigation as a hoax, staged to fraudulently extort unsuspecting victims.
“The initial complainant at the time, one Olorunfemi Olakunle stated that he boarded a taxi on May 17, 2023 from Apata to Dugbe in Ibadan and temporarily lost his memory while at it, only to regain same later that evening in the captivity of his abductors.
“He further stated that while he was in captivity of the kidnappers, the sum of N9.3million was transferred from his bank account to different beneficiaries and airtime of N125,000 was also bought with his account, using his Iphone 14 Promax phone.
“Based on the foregoing, detectives from the Anti-Robbery Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department immediately swung into action in a bid to apprehend beneficiaries of the purported transferred money and airtime. Hence, the arrest of the trio of Babatunde Adebayo, 57years; Stephen Adesope, 34years; and Adeleke Adejoke, 33years; in Lagos State.
“Moving forward and in a rather surprising twist of events, on July 19, 2023, during an interview session with all parties involved at the State Criminal Investigation Department, the initial complainant, Olorunfemi, voluntary withdrew his first admission only to submit on record that the whole kidnap story was a fraud masterminded by one Danjuma Adams Yusuf of Alagbado area of Lagos State.
“In furtherance of the above, and in a painstaking expansion of the investigation, the duo of Azubuikwe Agu 38yrs and Danjuma Adams Yusuf ‘m’ 35yrs, a police impersonator and fake Chief Superintendent of Police, who plays the enforcement role for the syndicate, was also apprehended.
“Sequel to these, voluntary confessions were obtained from Azubuikwe and Danjuma, leading to the arrest of accomplices; Taiwo Shegun ‘m’ 37yrs, and Amusat Ibrahim Alaba ‘m’ 47yrs, whose duties were to provide phone numbers and account details of their unsuspecting victims by initiating conceited relationships and false acquaintances.
“Investigations also revealed that Azubuike Agu, male, 38 years was able to get the details of his ‘Target’, Adejoke, female, by approaching her at her boutique in Lagos under the guise of patronising and initiating a genuine sales transaction, while another syndicate member, Amusat Ibrahim, a landlord resident in Lagos got the details of his victim by association as a fellow resident in the area.
“Investigation is ongoing, effort is being intensified to arrest other members of their syndicate. Items recovered from them include one handcuff.”
Meanwhile, during an interview at the State Criminal Investigation Department in Ibadan, Olakunle confessed that the whole kidnapping story was a hoax, masterminded by Danjuma Adams Yusuf of Lagos State, who presented himself to him as a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP).
Olakunle, said: “I think in this whole thing, I did not kidnap. I think I made a mistake by falling into this greedy trap. Even at the end of the whole thing, I was still the one who came back to say no, things were not right then. I came back to the State CID in Ibadan to say new things about the case I came to report the other time was not true. So, I never kidnapped, and I never robbed anyone.
“The kidnapping issue was staged. This is how it happened. Adams Yusuf is our leader. I used to see him as a police officer because he introduced himself as a police officer. And that is what I have known him to be.
“He told me to play this role, of which I think, I played in a gullible manner. I fell into the trap. Even at the end of the day, the claim was about N7.5million. In the whole of it, I got N300,000. I would say greed fell on me. That is just it. I did not say the N300,000 that was given to me in the N7.5million was small. Even, when I was given, I appreciated him.
“But I did not reveal the deal to the police intentionality. I was invited for a meeting at the state CID. The state CID, I think, has seen some lapses on the staged incident. Even that was why I was not tortured too much because they realised that I told them everything from A-Z, without hiding anything.
“I was the one who led the police to the arrest of Adams Yusuf. I did not go personally to report. There was a meeting that day organised by the State CID, which I was to attend, and which I attended. They told me that something is not right. Then, I opened up to them.
“This is how we implicated our last victims. Adams Yusuf sent some money to my account and asked me to transfer the money to different account numbers that he sent to me. I did not know any of the account owners. He is the one who knows them. I only acted on his instructions.
“This is my first deal with him. I transferred the money to three accounts. The purpose of sending money to the accounts of those people is to implicate them and extort them. So, he used me to be the complainant.
“When Adams Yusuf brought up the idea. He told me how to do it. Probably, after some few days, I would go and report to the police that I was kidnapped, and that I was under duress to send money to those bank accounts. I did it and it was working before things turned awry.”
The leader of the gang, Adams Danjuma Yusuf who presented himself as a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), said: “The people that I asked him (Olorunfemi Olakunle) to send money to are well known to me. This is my first time of doing this.
“I know very well our victims, except for a lady that sells baby wears. When I wanted to get her bank details, I sent somebody to buy baby wears in her shop. So, we got her bank details.
“I am not a police officer. I don’t wear police uniform. But I have some of my friends who are police officers. At times, I would go and play with them. I am from Niger State. Our victims were also arrested. But they have been freed now.”
However, the aggregate opinion of experts contacted for advice on what bank account owners should do when they received unexpected payment, stated that such money should not be withdrawn and it must be reported to the bank for details of the transaction, as well as reporting it to appropriate authorities, such as the police and the anti-graft agency in order to stay safe in case of being framed up for ransom-taking in kidnapping cases.
