Abducted wife of ex- Benue chief of staff regains freedom

Afour days in captivity, wife of Terwase Orbunde, former Chief of Staff to the Governor of Benue State, Mrs Abigail Orbunde and her house help, Miss Patience Ogute, have regained freedom from their abductors.

Mrs Orbunde and her house help regained their freedom on Tuesday and reunited with their families after an undisclosed amount of money was paid to their abductors, who had initially demanded N100 million ransom.

The duo were abducted by gun men close to the Genocide Cemetery where 73 people allegedly killed by Fulani herdsmen were given mass burial by the Benue state government in 2018 along Mobile Barracks- Welfare Quarters Road in Makurdi, at about 6: 00p. m., on Friday, April 12.

The former Chief of Staff, however, escaped with a gunshot on his right arm.

According to an eyewitness account, Orbunde, his wife and house help, had gone to inspect their farm located close to the road when gunmen numbering about five suddenly attacked them as they walked back to their car. It was reported that the criminals, after injuring the former chief of staff on the right arm, abandoned him and ordered the women to follow them to an unknown destination.

The witness, who watched from a distance, said good Samaritans later helped Orbunde to get to the hospital.

The shooting was said to have caused villagers and passers- by to scamper for safety in different directions.

Meanwhile, Mrs Orbunde has expressed gratitude to God for their deliverance. She told newsmen that they walked long distances in the bush without food and water. Her husband, who is receiving treatment in hospital, expressed appreciation to God and all those who stood by the family during their travails.