Police arrest suspected kidnappers of a director in Akwa Ibom Ministry of Justice, niece
Akwa Ibom State Police Command said it has arrested one Ability Etim Samuel ‘m’ (aged 45 years) and David Vincent Samuel ‘m’ (aged 36 years) for their alleged involvement in the abduction of a Director with the Ministry of Justice alongside his niece.
In his maiden press briefing at the command headquarters, Ikot Akpan-Abia, Uyo on Monday, the Commissioner of Police, CP Baba Mohammed Azare said the operatives of the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team, acting on Intelligence busted into the kidnappers’ den in Ikot Ukong village in Abak local government area of the state and rescued the victims kept in abandoned soak-away.
The tactical team led by CSP Kokoete Ebong also arrested the two suspects after further investigations and recovered both the victim’s car along Etinan Road where it had been abandoned and the Toyota Sienna vehicle used for the kidnap
The statement in parts read, ” you may recall that some time in December 2024, a distress call was received that a Director with the Ministry of Justice, Akwa Ibom State, and his niece (name withheld) were kidnapped by five armed men. Our operatives in the Command immediately swung into action and busted the kidnappers’ den in a thick forest located within Ikot Ukpong Village, Abak Local Government.
“A thorough search was conducted within the forest, and the victims were rescued unharmed from an abandoned soak-away. The victim’s car was also recovered by the police along Etinan Road where it had been abandoned. Also, the Toyota Sienna vehicle used to kidnap the victims was also recovered while 2 of the suspects were neutralized. Further Investigation led to the arrest of one Ability Etim Samuel ‘m’ (aged 45 years) and one David Vincent Samuel ‘m’ (aged 36 years). They are currently been investigated with the view to making more arrest of their gang members and recover their weapons.”
The rescued victim who spoke to journalists shortly after the press conference narrated how he was blocked in a road bump at Etinan, the glass of his door smashed with a hammer and his car keys seized by his abductors who blindfolded him immediately and took him to an unknown forest which was later identified as a forest in Abak local government.
He, however, thanked the leader of the rescue team, CSP Ebong and members and the police command as a whole for their swift response and professionalism in bringing him and his niece alive from the kidnappers’ den.
The command also paraded six suspects for alleged sodomy. The CP mentioned the suspects to include: Okwudili Levi Okeke AKA Eze ‘m’ (aged 34 years), Idara Itam Daniel ‘m’ (aged 23 years), David Udoh James ‘m’ (aged 23 years), Udofia Edem Udosen ‘m’ (aged 29 years), David Bassey Bassey ‘m’ (aged 26 years), and Daniel Jacob Edet ‘m’ (aged 30 years).
He said the arrest was made following an information from a journalist on 8th January 2025 that a 13-year-old child reported being raped repeatedly for about three years by four different men.
He said investigation revealed that Okwudili Okeke, one of the suspects was recruited into sodomy and has had anal sex with several men in the state describing it as a crime against humanity that will not be condoned.
CP Azare who said all the suspects would be charged to court upon completion of investigations vowed to clampdown down on criminals in the state even as he urged the public to avail the police of useful information to tackle crime and criminality.