A kidnap victim in the Jakpa area of Warri, Delta State, has been rescued by operatives of the state police command who were on stop-and-search duty. In the process, one of the fleeing suspects was gunned down.
The victim was rescued hours after the gunmen forced him into his own Lexus saloon car on Saturday night. He had alighted from the car after the suspects, who were operating with a tricycle, hit the car from behind.
Public Relations Officer of the command, DSP Bright Edafe, who confirmed this in a statement issued yesterday, said in an attempt to confront the hoodlums, they brought a gun, forced him into the car and zoomed off. But luck ran against them when operatives flagged the car down, only for them to jump out with a double barrel gun, attempting to escape.
“Some of the police operatives gave them a hot chase during which one of them bearing the firearm was neutralised while others escaped. On a closer look at the abandoned vehicle, a kidnap victim was seen blindfolded, he was immediately rescued by the operatives and taken to the police station, where he stated that he was kidnapped along Jakpa Road, Warri,” Edafe stated.
He said the victim confessed to have already credited the suspects’ account with N700,000.00 through bank transfer before he was rescued. Edafe added that the victim has been reunited with his family, while a manhunt for the other fleeing suspects was ongoing.
