I went into kidnapping to finance my father's treatment – Suspect

The Edo State Police Command has paraded the kidnappers of one Major Stephen Omogue (rtd) and his sales girl at Igwosa community in the state.

The kidnappers, Kenneth Okafor, 35, Mercy Ugbanyan, 19, Success Ugbanyan, 20, Gift Agbedion, 27 and Abeiyuwa Osayande, 35, were paraded alongside 47 other suspected criminals arrested for various crimes in the state.

Parading the suspects, the state Commissioner of Police, Johnson Babatunde Kokumo, said the suspects were arrested for kidnapping, murder, armed robbery and cultism across the state.

He said Kenneth Okafor, an ex-convict, led other members of his gang to kidnap the retired major and his sales girl at their shop at Igwosa community on BeninOre-Lagos road.

He said Kenneth and other members of his gang collected ransom from their victim and that he was arrested after collecting the ransom.

“On June 21, the command arrested one Kenneth Okafor, an ex-convict, released from prison in April this year after serving an eight-year jail term after collecting ransom from his victim. One Infinix and one Nokia phones belonging to the victim were recovered from him. Investigation led to the arrest of other members of his gang,” he said.

Speaking with journalists, Kenneth, who said he is a pastor, stated that he got involved in the kidnap to raise money for his father’s medical treatment.

“I am an assistant pastor in one of the churches in Benin. My father is sick and I needed money to take him to hospital, so I contacted the friends I met in prison who planned the kidnap. I then joined them to kidnap the man,” he said.

“I became born again after I was released from prison in April this year. I became an assistant pastor but when I needed money I could not help it but find other means to raise money,” he said.

He said they collected N700,000 as ransom from the victim, adding that he was arrested after collecting the ransom while others were arrested later.