11th June, 2024
By Jethro Ibileke
Edo State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Funsho Adegboye, has raised the alarm over the increasing involvement of indigenes in cases of kidnapping in the state.
Adegboye raised the alarm on Wednesday in Benin, the state capital, while briefing journalists on the Command activities to combat crime in the state.
He noted that kidnapping by herdsmen has somewhat reduced, as more locals are now being arrested for kidnapping.
He said: “From our recent experiences, from the victims we have liberated and debriefed, we have discovered that most of the kidnappers now not those we usually call herdsmen, the locals are getting seriously involved in kidnapping.
“Before, if you ask the victims of kidnapping, they will say ‘herdsmen’. The involvement of the so-called herdsmen is now very minimal.
“Somebody was arrested in Edo north, when he was brought here, their group leader and others came here and vouched for him. But, fortunately, investigation confirmed 100 percent that he kidnapped a woman and collected money. The people were ashamed for vouching for him.
“Also, of recent, this one happened around town here, a 23-year-old man kidnapped a five-year-old girl, kept her in his room for several days, collected N250,000 ransom from the parents, while the poor girl was in his room.
“We deployed all our technical arsenal and we were able to get him arrested. He confessed to the heinous crime and he has been charged to court. It was a pathetic situation,” he added.
The CP disclosed that operatives of the Command have been moving round to sensitize members of the public, especially the leaders, the youth leaders too, on the need to be more vigilant.
“So, everybody should be vigilant, everybody is a suspect. By this, I mean, just believe yourself, don’t believe that the next person is innocent,” he concluded.