A member of the notorious seven man Fulani kidnapping gang that made travelling by car or commuter buses along Kwale/Asaba highway in Delta State a very risky venture is now in police net.
The apprehended kingpin, Haruna Umar from Taraba State was among 18 suspects paraded Thursday by the Delta state commissioner of Police Zanna Mohammed Ibrahim in Asaba.
Correspondent Carl Ofonye reports that Haruna Umar led a seven man gang that specialized in blocking cars and commercial buses on the highways and taking their passengers hostage for ransom.
So far, six out of the seven man gang have been apprehended.
And as heinous as his alleged crime sounded, Haruna did not deny the allegations when we interviewed him. In fact, he was very relaxed and bold to tell us about his kidnapping exploits on Kwale/Asaba road before he was arrested by the police.
Haruna’s voluntary confession before TVC News Crew confirmed the information the Police commissioner earlier provided in his brief.
But as disturbing as the activities of the kidnappers might appear, what is more worrisome to the Delta State police boss is the speed with which family members of victims rush to pay ransom.
This trend, according to the police commissioner has made vibrant youths from all over the country to see kidnapping as a lucrative business to go into.
Zanna Mohammed appealed to members of the public to cooperate with the police in their ongoing efforts to rid the state of these criminal elements.
But this man who survived two days of captivity in the bush with the Fulani dare devil kidnappers is not impressed with this appeal by the police.
He wants the state police command to station special anti kidnapping squad on the highways and make their phone numbers available to members of the public to curb the menace.
He made an appeal to this effect as he was narrating his ordeal in the hands of the hoodlums.
It is worthy of note that in every parade of suspects the police in Delta State do these days, ninety percent or more of the suspects are usually kidnappers. And the suspects interestingly cut across different ethnic nationalities in Nigeria, making it a national affair.
