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The Lagos State Police Command has arrested a man and his son for allegedly kidnapping a teenager, Matthew Chukwuebuka.
The suspects, Alhaji Muhibudeen Akorede and Tao Akorede, were said to have held their 19-year-old victim hostage for nine days without food.
A statement on Thursday by the command’s spokesman, Deputy Supritendent of Police(DSP) Bala Elkana, said the suspects were arrested in Ibadan, Oyo State, by operatives of the State Intelligence Bureau (SIB), who trailed them there with support from the Technical Intelligence Unit (TIU).
He said the command on July 4 received a directive to follow up a petition sent to the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
Elkana disclosed that the suspects had demanded N30million ransom from the victim’s family, which they said should be paid into his (the victim’s) account so they could withdraw same since the boy was with them.
He said the teenager told the police that he did not know how he got to Ibadan, adding that it all happened after he received a call on his phone.
“The boy said on arrival in Ibadan, he was given something from a black pot to eat and he lost his senses. He said they ordered him to surrender his phone to them and the phone was programmed to reject incoming calls, except the only line they were demanding ransom through.
“That they collected the money in his possession and demanded more. He said he was taken to an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) point where they withdrew N10,000 from his account.
“They demanded N30million to be paid into the victim’s bank’s account as ransom. The victim has since been reunited with his family,” Elkana said.
He added that the suspects have been charged to court and have been remanded in prison custody.