Worsening Rate Of Kidnap And Abduction

The rising incidence of kidnapping has assumed a ubiquitous trend in Nigeria. On daily basis, Nigerians are inundated with news of the abduction of unsuspecting persons in various parts of the country.

On Thursday, September 19, 2022, at about 4:00 pm, one Mrs Damilola Ojo of 8 Specomill Avenue, in Agbado area of Ogun state, reported a case of missing persons. This later turned out to be an abduction for a ransom.

According to the report, on September 18, 2022, around 1:00 pm, Mrs Damilola Ojo left Abule Egba to visit her sister, leaving behind her son, uncle and mother. Her Mother later went out briefly on an errand in the area. The mother then returned home less than two hours later but found the main door into the house ajar with no one inside and a bit disorganized. She panicked and rushed to ask neighbours in the same building if they saw his brother and grandson leave the house. In addition, we were informed the mother also looked around the neighbourhood for them thinking they may have taken a short walk around, but this was to no avail.

The woman then made an immediate call to her daughter; Mrs Damilola Ojo, to alert her about the development, who then rushed back home immediately with her sister. They asked around and searched the whole area without success. They tried to call the uncle’s mobile phone, but it was switched off. Later that day, she received a call from kidnappers claiming they have her uncle and her son in their custody and threatened to harm both if she contacted the Police. In her words, Mrs Damilola Ojo said “I was terrified during this call, but I asked them what they wanted. They said all they wanted was my husband in exchange for my son and uncle”. As of the time of our reporting, we understand the husband in question here is Mr Olumayowa Ojo. He has been away from Nigeria for a few years.

She later told us that the kidnappers did not call back until September 21, 2022, at around 9:30 pm to ask that my husband should come to a specific location to meet them there. She said her anxiety was “just unbearable, and we prayed to hope that God would touch their hearts and return her son and uncle unharmed. The unfortunate thing was that they [kidnappers] were not reachable unless they called her”.

On September 24, 2022, the abductors called and identified themselves as a ’Cult group” and that their action was based on an unsettled dispute with her husband; Mr Olumayowa Ojo. Later that same day, Mrs Damilola Ojo, claimed to have received another call from the abductors who provided a meet-up location in IBARAGUN, Ogun state. The Nigerian Police were immediately contacted by the family and detectives went into action immediately.

On Monday, September 26, 2022, the Police detectives searched the IBARAGUN location and were able to successfully rescue the two abducted individuals (i.e., Mr OlaniyiAworinde (male; 56yrs-old) and her son Temidire Ojo (male; 8yrs-old). The rescue operation took about 2 hours. abductors fled the place before the police could apprehend them. Unfortunately, as of the time of this reporting, no arrest has been made in this matter.