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From Uchenna Inya, Abakaliki
The police in Ebonyi State have arrested a student, Fortune Cletus Onuoha, and another person, Nkwo Godspower Chiemerie, for allegedly conspiring to stage a kidnapping and demand ransom from the student’s father.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Joshua Ukandu, disclosed this in a statement in Abakaliki, the state capital.
He said the suspects were arrested following a report by Fortune’s father, who contacted the command’s control room to report that his son had been kidnapped from his hostel in Ikwo Local Government Area of the state.
According to him, the father reported receiving view-once videos and voice notes showing his son tied up, alongside demands by the purported kidnappers for a ransom of N30 million and threats to kill him if the money was not paid.
“On October 31, 2026, at about 10:30 p.m., the father of Fortune Cletus Onuoha contacted the Command’s Control Room to report that his son had been kidnapped from his hostel in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. He further reported receiving view-once videos and voice notes showing his son tied up, alongside demands by the purported kidnappers for a ransom of N30,000,000 (Thirty Million Naira), with threats to kill him if the ransom was not paid.
“Following the report, operatives of the command commenced a painstaking, intelligence-driven investigation to unravel the circumstances surrounding the alleged abduction and apprehend those responsible.
“Sustained surveillance and discreet investigative efforts eventually yielded a breakthrough on the night of November 5, 2026, when operatives arrested the two suspects as they emerged from the room where they had been hiding,” he said.
Ukandu warned members of the public against resorting to such criminal schemes, stressing that staging kidnappings not only inflicts severe emotional trauma on parents, guardians and loved ones but also diverts valuable police resources from addressing genuine security threats.
