Segun Ayinde, Abeokuta
Police in Ogun State have arrested 10 members of a kidnap syndicate in Ijebu-Igbo for allegedly killing four persons and burying two in shallow graves after collecting ransom from the families of the victims.
The suspects are: Chukwuma Bathelomeu, 40; Igwe Monday, 42; Ifeanyi Mathias, 31; Anayo Simeon, 28; Ayo Adedayo, 46; Chibueze Odah, 41; Ejiofor Nwali, 35; Eke Peter, 22; Monday Paul, 24; Chukwuma Zainab, 37.
They were arrested for the crimes of not only kidnapping but also conspiracy, murder, attempted murder and armed robbery.
The State’s Police Commissioner, CP Abiodun Alamutu, while parading the suspects at the police headquarters, Eleweran, identified 17-year-old Elizabeth Adelaja Adeniran as one of the victims killed by the abductors.
Alamutu also mentioned others, including Oluwaseun Oworu Samuel, Ogunyemi Femi and Oladokun Bolanle, as victims murdered by the kidnappers after stealing their valuables and collecting ransoms from their families.
He said that the kidnapers, on July 28, 2023, shot and killed a Point Of Sale (POS) one Oluwaseun Oworu Samuel, and robbed him of his POS machine, Credit Cards, cash and other valuables and left him in a pool of blood but he later died at Babcock University Hospital for medical attention.
The CP explained how the kidnapers, on October 2, 2023, stormed the house of one Adegbenga Adeniran at Ijebu-Igbo and abducted his teenage daughter, Elizabeth to an unknown destination, and still collected a sum of N3,100,000 after killing her and dumping her corpse in a well.
He explained further that the abductors on Nov, 23, 2023, kidnap one Ogunyemi Femi at his residence in Ijebu-Igbo and whisked him away to an unknown destination where they recorded a video of him, sent it to his family and collected a sum of N3,000,000 as ransom through the deceased Oluwaseun’s Moniepoint POS. They later killed and buried him in a shallow grave.
Alamutu also said that on March 12, 2024, the kidnappers stormed the resident of one Oladokun Matthew, at Awa Ijebu, robbed him of his belongings and abducted his wife, Bolanle to an unknown destination, collected ransom, killed her and later buried her body in a shallow grave.
He, however, said that the suspects would be charged to court for their crimes, while sounding a note of warning to other perpetrators of kidnap activities to desist from such as the police would not fold it’s arms and watch criminals wreaking havoc on residents of the state
Meanwhile, one of the the suspects, Chukwuma Bathelomeu, from Ebonyi State, while speaking in an interview, confessed that he got N200,000 as his own share after killing Femi from one Ifeanyi, a member of the gang whom he said has fled to Cotonu.
The suspects, whom with his wife, Zainab, was arrested and paraded by the police also said he and his gang including Ifeanyi, abducted and killed his former employer, one Baba Adeife, after collecting ransom on him from his family.
He said “We went to Rob and kidnap Femi in his house at Ijebu-Ode around 9:pm, because we heard he is a Yahoo boy. I took Cutlass and Ifeanyi took gun and we both went to Femi house to rob him. But he said he has no money. We later kidnapped him and took him to a bush where Ifeanyi killed Femi with his gun, and we buried him in a shallow grave.
Ifeanyi later took the phone of Femi and called his Family members and they paid a ransom of N3 million. Before the police arrested me, I heard that Ifeanyi is now on the run to Cotonu. I was only given 200,000 from the proceeds of Femi’s ransom.
“We also killed my former employer Baba Adeife who is into fish business and I was given N170,000 from the proceeds of his ransom. It was after we killed Femi three months later that the police arrested me and my wife and other members.” he added