Ex-lawmaker’s Driver Arranges Own Kidnapp, Demands N10m Ransom

The Rivers State Police Command has said it is on the trail of one Sylvanus Okon, a driver to a former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly (names withheld), who stage-managed his own abduction and demanded for the sum of N10 million from his boss as ransom.

This is as an aide to the immediate past Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, Mr. Henry Halliday on Wednesday afternoon escaped death when gunmen stormed his residence at the Abuloma area of Port Harcourt, the state capital.

LEADERSHIP reports that that the suspected assassins, numbering two were trying to gain access into Halliday’s residence when they were arrested by men of the Nigeria Police, following distress calls from residents of the area.

Okon, according to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Ahmad Muhammad, arranged with a gang of kidnappers to stage-manage his own abduction in order to get money from the former legislator.

Muhammad stated that a team of the State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), acting on information stormed the hide-out of the kidnappers in a forest near Omoku, headquarters of Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni local government area of the state, at about 6.45pm on June 3, 2015, where they arrested two members of the gang while Okon, and other members of the gang escaped with bullet wounds.

He said the two arrested suspects, ThankGod Ake and Uchechukwu Nwabueze confessed that the driver of the former lawmaker brought the idea to them so as to make money from his principal.

Muhammad said, “On June 3, 2015, at about 6:45 pm in a forest around Omoku, another team of the Special anti-Robbery Squad daringly stormed the camp of suspected kidnappers and arrested two of them while others fled with bullet wounds.

“Preliminary questioning indicated the Uche chukwu Nwabueze and Thankgod Ake are members of the gang that kidnapped Sylvanus Okon, driver of a recent past legislator in the Rivers State House Assembly. The driver in concert with the gang stage managed the kidnapping to get money from the ex-legislator.

“In the initial contact, the suspects demanded N10,000,000.00 (Ten Million Naira) ransom from him. Efforts are ongoing to arrest Sylvanus Okon, who at the time of the raid fled together with their other cohorts in crime when the Police stormed their hideout. “

In another development, the PPRO said SARS killed two suspected armed robbers on June 3, 2015, during a raid at a suspected hide-out of an armed robbery gang along Farm Road, Aluu in Ikwerre local government area of the state.

He said, “On 03/05/2015 at about 6:00 pm at Aluu Farm Road, a team of Special anti-Robbery Squad raided the enclave of a suspected gang of criminals that specialized in car snatching and engaged them.

“The operation yielded in recovery of five assorted stolen vehicles, two pump action guns, and multiple plate numbers while two suspected armed robbers got fatally wounded.”