By Adadareporters
One of the four sons of Eha-Alumona, who was kidnapped at Api-Opi in Nsukka local government area of Enugu State, Tuesday, described his experience while in the captivity of his abductors as ‘horrible’.
The victim, who refused to be mentioned, said he was travelling to his village alongside his wife and two kids when the abductors attacked them. “They dragged me inside the bush,” he said, adding that his wife and kids would have been kidnapped but for the intervention of one of the kidnappers who told his colleagues to leave them.
Quoting him, “I was kidnapped at Opi, very close to my community. The attack was shortly after I had passed military and police checkpoints. There is a crossbar along the sloppy part of the road, which also makes driver slow down by a bend.
“I got there, and the kidnappers suddenly appeared. They were well armed with sophisticated guns. Two of them appeared in my front. I looked back and saw two persons again, carrying AK47 rifles. They were positioned to shoot me in case I attempted to reverse. They shot at my car’s radiator and the tryes as well. I was with my wife and two of my kids. They dragged me into the bush. One of them attempted to drag my wife and our two kids to the bush, but one of them told him to leave them alone.
“The person that was dragging me was a Fulani guy. He was looking terrible and very slim. While they were dragging me, they also kidnapped three other men, who happen to be from my place as well. They took us into a deep bush. Rains and sun beat us badly. If they suspected that they might be trailed, they changed locations. It was an exercise of moving from one spot to the other. They took our phones. They also took my bible and wedding ring.”
On allegations that security operatives along the road might be working in collaboration with the abductors, the middle-aged man said, “I won’t discuss that matter, but security operatives should be interrogated on the kidnappings going on there. I can’t say anything about that, but let there be serious interrogations among those security men manning those checkpoints. We were kidnapped and there was no security intervention despite that the scene of the kidnap was not far from police and military checkpoints. I thought the gunshot would have alerted the security personnel that there was danger, but nothing happened.”
He said five of the persons that kidnapped him and others were Fulani while one spoke Igbo: “Only one person was speaking Igbo. Others are pure Fulani. It was a terrible experience.”
On the amount paid as ransom, he said, “They used the phone of one of us to be contacting our relatives and friends. After four days in captivity, we paid N13m to regain our freedom. One of us paid N4m while the remaining three paid N4m each.”
Meanwhile, two yet-to-be-identified middle-aged men have been arrested by local vigilantes of Nsukka local government area of the Enugu State along Enugu/Ugwuogo/Opi/Nsukka road.
Ejike Okpe, media aide to the council chairman of Nsukka LGA, Walter Ozioko, disclosed this in a post he made available to newsmen.
According to him, “Efforts being made by the council chairman, Barr Walter Ozioko, to restore security, sanity and tranquility along Opi-Ugwogo road have started yielding results as the combined forces of Nsukka LGA Neighbourhood Watch, Nsukka LGA Rapid Response Squad and their Forests Guards counterparts, Sunday, the 2nd of July, 2023, arrested two suspected kidnappers.
“The suspects who have been handed over to the police are currently co-operating with the men of law. It is believed that through them, their accomplices, cohorts and gang would be tracked down.”
