Abducted Anambra female banker killed after ransom payment

A female banker, identified simply as Ifeoma, has been murdered by suspected kidnappers in Anambra State after her family paid a ransom for her release.

The victim was reportedly abducted in Onitsha and stayed several days in captivity before her captors reached out to the family members for ransom.

A family source who craved anonymity disclosed the development to our correspondent on Tuesday, adding that an undisclosed amount of money was received by the kidnappers. Sadly, in the end, she was not released, until her corpse was found along the road.

The source said, “Her corpse was found near Ideani Junction, along the Nnobi-Alor Road in Idemili South Local Government Area. This is even though the abductors collected ransom from the family members.

“She was abducted at a location in Onitsha, but after some days, the kidnappers reached out to the family members and demanded the ransom before the unfortunate news of her death.

“They suspect that she might have recognised the kidnappers and hence they had to eliminate her to avoid being exposed. It’s so unfortunate, the family members are devastated by the news of her death.”

When contacted, the spokesman for the Anambra State Police Command, Tochukwu Ikenga, confirmed the development, adding that the corpse had been evacuated from the road.

Ikenga said, “The command received the information about an abandoned female corpse found along the Nnobi-Alor Road allegedly dumped by suspected kidnappers.

“The corpse has been evacuated, the pictures have been escalated and investigations have begun to unravel the circumstances behind the death of the victim.”

Meanwhile, the state police command, while reacting to the news of the release of the two Catholic nuns and one other victim kidnapped by some assailants, called on the released victims to come forward for possible debriefing to enable the police to begin proper investigation.

Ikenga, who disclosed this in a press statement on Tuesday, said the command had expressed willingness to work with the victims for necessary action.

He said, “The Anambra State Police Command has expressed willingness to work with the victims of abduction for necessary action, especially in the efforts of the command to continue to deny these criminals the space to wreak havoc and to create a safer environment for citizens in the state.

“The command demonstrates this commitment in response to the news of the release of the two Reverend Sisters recently abducted along the Ufuma Road, Orumba North Local Government and a video of an alleged escape of Mr Onyebuchi Okocha (popularly known as Onyeze Jesus) from a criminal hideout.

“To this end, the command while waiting for the victims to recuperate for possible debriefing by the investigating officers, assures improved security dominance and surveillance operations targeted to enhance safety across the state to deter criminal activities and ensure public safety.”

—Punch

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