Following a victim’s distress call in Nasarawa State, the Nasarawa State Police Command has apprehended two alleged kidnappers and retrieved damning evidence.
The State command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Ramhan Nansel, issued a press release stating that at around 2:30 pm on February 13, Jameson Godwill, 25, of Ado Village, Nasarawa State, informed the police that he had spotted Musa Babagana, one of his alleged kidnappers, at Mararaba Junction.
Godwill and his younger sibling were reportedly abducted on January 25, 2025, at approximately 7:30 a.m., while travelling from Mararaba, Karu LGA of Nasarawa state, to CBN Junction, Abuja, in a suspected commercial vehicle, he recalled in the statement.
He claimed that after robbing them of their two cell phones, an iPhone 12 and an iPhone 11 Pro, and ₦63,000 in cash, the suspects gave them ₦1,000 to cover their return trip to Mararaba.
He said upon sighting the suspect (Babagana), the complainant raised an alarm, prompting the suspect to flee at high speed to evade arrest.
The statement further explained that immediately after the police received the report, operatives swiftly deployed to the scene, where Babagana, Iliyasu Baba, and another suspect, Ibrahim Mohammad, were intercepted and arrested.
The PPRO, however, disclosed that one of the suspects, simply identified as Haruna, managed to escape and that those arrested admitted to the crime and made confessional statements.
“During interrogation, both Musa Babagana and Ibrahim Mohammed confessed to being members of a kidnapping syndicate operating in Abuja and its environs, including Dutse Alhaji, Kubwa, Gwarimpa, Mandala, and Suleja in Niger State. They admitted to kidnapping victims, detaining them, and demanding ransom from their relatives before releasing them”, the statement added.
He said some of the items recovered from the suspects are one Toyota Corolla with registration number FK186 EKO, Two military camouflage uniforms as well as a military desert camouflage uniform.
Also recovered, according to the statement, included a black paramilitary uniform, one military identification card, a paramilitary cap, four SIM cards from different network providers, two jack knives, one pair of handcuffs, One black boot and a desert boot.
The statement stated that the Commissioner of Police, CP Shetima Jauro Mohammed, has directed that the case be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for further investigation and prosecution.
He also commended the officers for their swift and professional response, reaffirming the Command’s commitment to ensuring the safety and security of residents.
