Kidnappers in Port Harcourt have increased the stake, by also abducting a man, who went to hand over a huge ransom demanded by some unknown gunmen, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
The gunmen, said to have stormed the shop of the victim, identified as Mrs. Tina Bobmanuel, and took her away from her shop in Woji, Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state capital on Wednesday, November 22, and have refused to release her even after collecting ransom money, valued at N5.3million.
Rather than free the 58 year-old Bobmanuel, they reportedly detained one Samuel, who reportedly volunteered to act as the conveyor of the ransom, according to Charles Felix, son of the victim, who narrated the sad incident to reporters in the state capital, on Sunday.
He narrated how the four men, who were in police uniform, who carried out the operation, first acted as if they had come to arrest the victim, after which they revealed their true colours and unleashed heavy terror on those around the vicinity, before spiriting their victim away.
His words: “Four men, with two wearing police uniforms and armed with AK-47 rifles, stormed his mother’s shop in a white Honda Pilot car, at about 1:30pm on that fateful day. My mother’s husband, who is my stepfather, is the Managing Director of an oil servicing company here in Port Harcourt.
Narrating how the incident occurred, he said, an eyewitness told him that the gunmen, posing as police officers, walked up to his mother and informed her that she was under arrest, for an undisclosed offence.
However, a security man attached to the shopping mall, who was said to have demanded to know the name of the police station they came from and where they were taking the victim to, succeeded in getting the beating of his life, and was left to writhe in pain.
The identity of the abductors were later unveiled when one of them reportedly shouted, Where is the big money, indicating their real mission, and when told by the business woman that there was no money, reportedly ransacked her shop and allegedly carted away bags, wrappers, phones and two decoders.
To further demobilise the security man on sight, they were said to have hit him on the head, causing him to slump, before grabbing the victim and her aged mother who was said to usually at her shop to assist her daughter in her business.
They were said to have however let off the older woman after observing her frail nature, before grabbing her daughter and forcing her into the waiting vehicle and whisked her off to an unknown destination.
After a harrowing wait for four days, the gunmen reportedly made their first contact, demanding a whopping N100million, which they later reduced to N50million after the family begged them that they could not afford that much, and thereafter got the first payment of N1million and an additional $1,000.
Felix narrated further: “The gunmen contacted the family four days after and demanded for N100 million and when we told them we do not have that kind of money, they reduced it to N50 million.
“Few days later, they called and said they have reduced it to N15 million, urging us to be quick before they change their mind. Now they have also kidnapped my father’s staff, who went to pay the ransom. On December 1, 2017, my father’s staff was sent to give the gunmen N1million and additional $1000.
“When they called again on December 14 and insisted on the N15million, we pleaded that there is no money and that we could only raise additional N4million. They agreed to collect it and my father sent his staff, one Samuel, the same person that delivered that first amount.
“So, they told us where to drop the money. But when Samuel went, they collected the N4 million. Since then we have not heard from him. His two phones have been switched off. We believed they have also kidnapped him.
“All we are pleading is let them release her unhurt. The entire family is worried about her health. Samuel’s wife and a relative have also reported that her husband is missing to the company. We have also reported the incident at Woji Estate Police Station, as well as the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Police in Woji.”