Family of the driver in the employ of Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), Mr Seun Emmanuel, who was kidnapped along Owo-Ifon road has appealed to the management of the company to secure the release of their breadwinner.
The appeal is coming after the bandits suspected to be kidnappers were said to have established contacts with the relatives of the victims demanding N10m for his release.
It was gathered that Emmanuel was returning to Akure from an official trip in Ifon in Ose Local government area of the state, with the Product Manager, Postpaid of BEDC, Andrew Okojie, when the armed men shot at their vehicle.
The driver and his boss ran into the barricade around Elegbeka community and tried to manoeuver his way but lost control when the hoodlums rained bullets on the vehicle and somersaulted into the bush.
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The development left the product manager unconscious while the armed hoodlums whisked the driver into the forest, believing that Okojie had died.
The military personnel manning the checkpoint before Elegbeka learnt about the incident and rushed to the scene, only to discover the body of the product manager lying unconscious and rushed him to an hospital and had since reunited with his family.
But some four days after his abduction, Emmanuel remains in the captivity of the hoodlums who initially demanded N100m for his release but reduced it to N10m, threatening to kill the driver if the family fails to meet their demand.
The family, however, appealed to the management of BEDC to come to their aid to ensure the release of the driver, saying his abductors have been threatening to kill him.
A close family member of the victim accused the company of footdragging to secure the release of their employee and appealed to the company to secure the release of their son.
However, the spokesperson of BEDC Plc in Ondo Region, Mr Michael Barnabas, dismissed the family’s claim, saying the company is doing its best and offering his family the necessary assistance to get Emmanuel out of captivity.
According to him, “This is a security issue that I may not want to discuss publicly due to its sensitivity.
“We are working closely with the security agencies in the state towards his safe release and one thing I can assure you is that we are not far from his family. We are offering them all the necessary assistance and support they need in this trying time.”
When contacted, the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Funmi Odunlami, confirmed the incident and said the command’s anti-kidnapping unit has taken over the case.
She assured that the victim would be rescued from the captives of the hoodlums soon, and said detectives from the command have been combing the forest.
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