New kidnap tactics

Watch that your apprentice, sales girl, they may be up to something bad



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Palpable fear has gripped the majority of rich traders in Anambra State as a new wave of kidnapping masterminded by their apprentices and house helps comes into vogue.

At the last count, over five kidnap cases where apprentice traders and sales representatives arranged and kidnapped either their masters or their children for purposes of taking ransom have been recorded.

Two recent cases that happened in Onitsha and Nnewi respectively brought to the fore the new dimension to the obnoxious kidnapping business that is now commonplace in the state.

The first case involves 23-year-old Samuel Ari who hails from Ngenanwa Odo in Aninri Local Government Area of Enugu State who resides at No. 1, Nnepi Street, Awada. Samuel had plotted with another apprentice and kidnapped their master’s six-year-old son and demanded N7 million ransom from him.

The second case was that of 26-year-old Nchedu Onyeli of Irefi Oraifite in Ekwusigo Local Government of Anambra State who tried to extort N400, 000 from her former boss with a kidnap threat.

According to the police, Samuel Ani was arrested with one 24-year-old Linus Okoli who resides at 38 Christ Street, Aba, Abia State on February 15, 2010 at Satellite Police Station, Lagos.

The Deputy Commissioner of Police in the state, DCP Agboola Oshodi-Glover told Daily Sun that Samuel and Linus kidnapped little Master Ikechukwu Egwu who is six years old at Faith Nursery and Primary School, Awada on February 8, 2010, and took him to Linus’s abode in Aba.

He further said that they took the little boy to Lagos after a week, but lost contact with him in a church in Lagos.

“The boy was picked up by Good Samaritans and handed over to the police at Satellite station. The suspects went to claim the boy as their missing younger brother before they were rounded up. Before then, they were demanding N7 million ransoms,” he narrated.

But narrating his story to Daily Sun, Samuel said he served the boy’s father, Mr. Jerry Egwu who happens to come from the same village with him for four and half years, but he did not settle him.

He said, “I served our village man, four years and six months in the Main Market, Onitsha where he sells ladies’ wears and we had a problem which was caused by his wife and he drove me out without any money.

“So, I went back to the village and stayed until my brother who is in Aba found me some money and I returned to Onitsha after a year and started trading on ladies’ wears. One day, one of our oga’s relations who is serving him came to me and said that our oga is in the habit of not settling his boys (apprentices) as he would always find a fault to sack the person when it’s nearing time for settlement.

“So, he said he was looking for a way to extract money from the man, so that if he eventually sacks him without settlement, he would have some money to start life with. I told him all those things are in God’s hand.

“One day, he called me on phone to meet him where he was drinking and told me that there is something he wants us to do. I asked him what it was, he said he will go to the school where the man’s child attends, abduct the child and bring him to me so I will keep him in my house. I told him no, I cannot do that, that I cannot keep that boy in my house, that I cannot try it.

“So, he kept on talking and disturbing me that if the money comes, we will share it. He continued preaching to me, I told him no; that I cannot do it. Another thing is that it’s the same Awada that we live. So, when he continued disturbing me, I told him that I will call one boy that I know in Aba. So, I called the guy and told him and he said no problem. I told him that the boy has agreed that we will keep the boy in his house.

“So, one early morning he called me and said that I should go and wait for him at Eze Iweka by Tony Umeh. So, he went and abducted the boy from his school and brought him to me and also gave me N2,000 and I now took him to Linus’s house in Aba. It was from there that after one week, we took him to Lagos and when we lost him at the church, he was taken to the police, we went there to pick him, that he is our missing younger brother, not knowing that the police have become aware of the incident and we were arrested.”

Similarly, Nchedu telling her own story said: “I collected my neighbour’s account number and sent a text message to my master and asked him to pay N400, 000 into that account. I served before as a sales girl. He deals on tubes and tyres at Machine Parts Market, Nnewi”.

Asked why she asked her boss to pay N400, 000, Nchedu said, “It is for nothing. I just asked him to pay in the money because of my mummy’s money I lost”.

Asked why she felt the master would pay the money, she said. I also told him that if he doesn’t pay the money, I will kidnap him”.

She, however, said that the boss did not know that it was her that was sending the messages, but only came to know when the neighbour who owns the account went to collect this money paid into the account and she was arrested, adding that she only sent text messages to the boss two times and in each threatening him of kidnap.

Regretting her actions, she said that the idea of kidnap just came to her and she decided to play with it.

She, however, pleaded for forgiveness, saying that the neighbour who gave her the account number was not aware of what she needed the account number for.

“I only told her that somebody wanted to send money to me and that I don’t have any account with any bank, that she should help me with her account so that the person will pay in the money for me. That is all. I’m sorry for involving her in this. I want God to forgive me, I want the police to forgive me and I want everybody to forgive me. I didn’t know what came over me.”