Operatives of the Enugu State Police Command have successfully rescued four kidnap victims in separate operations conducted in Enugu and neighbouring Benue State.
During these coordinated efforts, security personnel also recovered the body of another victim, believed to have been killed by his abductors.
According to the Command’s spokesperson, SP Daniel Ndukwe, the rescues were achieved through intelligence-driven operations involving a collaborative team comprising police operatives, the Nigerian Army, Enugu State Forest Guards, neighbourhood watch personnel, vigilante groups, and the Benue State Civil Protection Guards.
In one operation, two brothers abducted from Ezimo-Ulo in Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State were rescued. Security teams—including officers from the Udenu Police Division, the Anti-Kidnapping Section of the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU), the Distress Response Squad (DRS), and the Orukam Police Division of the Benue State Police Command—pursued the kidnappers to Ikele in Owukpa Community, Ogbadibo Local Government Area of Benue State. Leveraging the Inspector-General of Police’s Handshake Patrol initiative, the operatives engaged the suspects in a gunfight, forcing them to flee with suspected gunshot wounds and enabling the safe rescue of the victims.
Items recovered from the kidnappers’ hideout include 15 rounds of live ammunition, Android phones and car keys belonging to the victims, additional mobile phones and accessories, a bottle containing substances suspected to be hard drugs with related paraphernalia, clothing items, and ₦11,800 in cash. The rescued victims have since been debriefed and reunited with their family.
In a separate operation, personnel from the Umabor Police Division, the Anti-Kidnapping Section of the VCRU, the Enugu State Forest Guards, and neighbourhood watch groups rescued two more victims kidnapped from Amukpa Village in Ogbozara Community, Nsukka Local Government Area.
Tragically, police also reported the recovery of another victim’s decomposing body from a forest, with evidence indicating he died from gunshot wounds suffered while in captivity.
SP Ndukwe confirmed that investigations are ongoing and that security forces have intensified efforts to apprehend the fleeing suspects involved in both incidents.
The Enugu State Commissioner of Police, Mamman Bitrus Giwa, has directed all tactical and intelligence units to sustain the manhunt for the kidnappers and reaffirmed the Command’s dedication to fighting violent crime and ensuring the safety of residents. He also called on the public to continue supporting security agencies with credible and timely information to assist ongoing operations.
