Usman Hassan, a principal suspect among kidnappers who abducted and later killed an Ibadan farm owner, Mr Oluwole Agboola, has been arrested by police operatives in Ogun State Command.
Hassan is the brother of Usman Tahiru, who was a staff of late Agboola, and who confessed that he collected N50,000 as his share of the ransom paid by the family of the late farm owner.
Hassan whose accomplices had been arrested in Oyo State after the kidnap of Agboola at Solalu Village, before he was eventually killed, ran to Ogun State to hibernate when he knew that the police were after him.
Disclosing the arrest of the kidnap suspect, the police spokesman in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, said in a statement on Monday that he started recruiting other Fulani men to form another kidnap gang in the state.
According to Oyeyemi, “He (Hassan) ran out of luck when detectives of Ogun State Police Command got information about his activity from the Fulanis he had tried to recruit into his kidnap team.
“His hideout in Imala area was stormed by the detectives and he was promptly arrested.”
The PPRO stated further that when he was interrogated, Hassan opened up on how he conspired with his biological brother, Tahiru Usman, and others to kidnap their victim in Akinyele area of Ibadan.
The PPRO said that Hassan also confessed that Agboola was killed after the gang had collected ransom because their victim knew and could identify them.
Oyeyemi added that the state Commissioner of Police, Edward Ajogun had directed that the suspect be transferred to the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Eleweran, Abeokuta, from where he would be transferred to Oyo State Police Command for further interrogation and subsequent prosecution.
However, Hassan, in an interview with the Nigerian Tribune, said that he was not privy to the kidnap of his brother’s late boss, but was only asked by his brother, Tahiru, to bring three Fulani men to a junction close to the farm on the day of the kidnap.
He said he left immediately, and only saw Tahiru some days later, adding that his brother could not give a good account of his boss’s whereabouts.
Hassan added that when he questioned his brother after hearing about his boss’s death, Tahiru told him that Agboola was killed after his family paid a ransom because he could recognise his attackers.
The suspect also said that contrary to his brother’s claim that he (Hassan) gave him N50,000 on the third day after the kidnap, it was his brother who later gave him N20,000 to repair his motorcycle.
He swore with the Qur’an that he did not know that it was part of kidnap money, saying that his brother was just trying to put him into trouble by mentioning his name as one of the planners of the kidnap.
Hassan said he had to flee Ibadan for Ogun State when he heard about all the things his brother said, and how the police had mounted a search for him.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Cryptocurrency: Understanding The Craze, Threat
ON Friday, February 6, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) rocked the boat with a circular that inadvertently highlighted how popular cryptocurrency transactions have become among Nigerians in recent years, judging by…
ICYMI: Yoruba, Hausa Teachers Needed In US
The US Embassy and Consulate in Nigeria has announced that the services of Yoruba and Hausa teachers are needed in the United States. According to the Public Affairs Section of the US Mission Nigeria…
Controversy Over Man Who Jumped From 7th Floor Of 1004 During EFCC Raid
The police in Lagos State have begun investigations into the circumstances surrounding the alleged death of a man at 1004 Estate, Victoria Island, who allegedly jumped from the 7th floor of one of the buildings. The man was…
INEC Lists Five Challenges Ahead Of 2023 Elections
AS politicians step up horse-trading ahead of subsequent elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has listed five main areas of likely challenges…
After Two Years, Daddy Freeze Apologises To Bishop Oyedepo
Daddy Freeze whose real name is Ifedayo Olarinde has apologised to Bishop Oyedepo who is the presiding bishop and founder of Living Faith Church aka Winners Chapel…