School Boy Freed After N5M Ransom Paid  

Kazeem Ugbodaga

Kidnapped Nigerian two-year old school boy, Emmanuel Alonge has been returned to his parents by the kidnappers after his family paid N5 million ransom.

Alonge was kidnapped by yet to be identified gunmen on Monday at Iju area of Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria and taken to an unknown destination.

Little Emmanuel Oluwatunniso Alonge.

The kidnappers had earlier demanded for N150 million, which they later slashed to N100 million and then to N20 million and later to N5 million.

Mr. Olusegun Alonge, father of the boy told P.M. NEWS on phone this morning that the boy has been returned to the family by the kidnappers after paying N5 million ransom.

The overjoyed Alonge said the family picked up the boy around 3.00 this morning at Car Wash bus stop, Alakuko, where the kidnappers dropped him.

“I thank God, the baby is fine. They treated him well. The house boy is still with the police as they are still investigating the case,” he said.

Little Alonge was being taken to school in the parent’s Lexus Jeep in the company of the driver (Daniel) and the private nurse (Mrs. Adeyemo) when the kidnappers who ambushed and overpowered them snatched the little boy from them at gun point.

It was gathered from eye witnesses that the kidnappers wore masks during the operation and had been in the vicinity awaiting their victim some hours before the time.

It was learnt that when they arrived the area, they drove and packed their black Mitsubishi Montero jeep at a distance of about seven buildings away from the residence of the Alonges.

An eye witness had said that, “Truly, we noticed the black jeep packed, but we didn’t suspect any ulterior motive because the passengers were outside playing and chasing each others about, until when we noticed them moving again to block the coming Lexus jeep carrying the boy to school.”

Another eye witness, Kamilu Sulaimon said that trouble began for the Alonge family when the Montero jeep pretended to be moving away from the Willisco Street only to block the Lexus jeep.

“The jeep refused to give way to the Lexus jeep and at the same time refused to move on; the driver of the Lexus jeep started to hoot and suddenly, the kidnappers alighted and demanded for the boy.

“We noticed that the driver refused, this made the assailants threatened to break the glass, eventually, the driver opened the door when he saw the guns with them, they threw the private nurse under the SUV car, and sped off with the child,” he explained.

The nurse, Adeyemo explained that because she was thrown under the vehicle and that Daniel could not ride on her, it gave the assailants ample time to drive off before the chase that followed could be effected.

According to her, the kidnappers hit her several times with gun butt when she refused to release the boy, adding that “when they opened the door, they told us ‘we are not going to kill you if only you give us the boy’; I then told them that I will not release the boy, until they kill me, that was when they hit me in the head and when I slumped they threw me under the vehicle.”

However, the arrested driver, Mr Gabriel Olajubu and the house boy, Stephen and two guards are still with the police in connection with the incident.