Borno: Police arrest eight suspected kidnappers

Borno Police Command, on Wednesday, said it had arrested eight suspected kidnappers in the state.

Parading the suspects at the command’s headquarters in Maiduguri, the Police Commissioner in the state, Abdu Umar, said that the suspects were arrested by men of the crack team between March and April.

Umar said that on May 30, the police crack team stormed a camp at Njimtilo area of Maiduguri and arrested six persons suspected to be leaders of various kidnapping syndicates terrorising Borno south and Mubi general area in Adamawa and Taraba states.

He said that the team also arrested another suspect said to be compromising cattle rustling and habouring criminals in Njimtilo area.

The Police Commissioner said that a suspected notorious kidnapper was also arrested by a team of local hunters at Norkoli village in Chibok Local Government Area on March 25.

He said that the suspect allegedly kidnapped one Ibrahim Mohammed and demanded N2 million ransom, at that he was nabbed at the point of collecting the money.

Umar said that upon interrogation, the suspect confessed to the crime and mentioned another suspect, now at large, as their gang leader.

He also said that two suspects were arrested in April at Haram Village in Hawul Local Government Area for allegedly conspiring and kidnapping one Sanda Mallam at Gargo village in Askira Uba Local Council.

The police boss said that the suspects were armed with pump action gun, single barrel gun, cutlasses and sticks.

“The victim was taken to a bush and held hostage for three days, until a ransom of N3 million was paid. He was released after being greviously hurt,” he said.

Umar said that the three suspects had confessed to the crime and claimed that they got N500,000 each as their share of the ransom.

He added that concerted efforts were being intensified toward arresting the two other suspects now at large.