Man Confesses to Staging Nephew’s Kidnap for N200,000
A man who acted as an informant for bandits, Ado Haruna, has confessed to orchestrating the abduction of his own nephew, Alhaji Bashiru Anas, and his family, but ended up receiving only N200,000 from the N13 million ransom paid.
Haruna was apprehended by operatives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and was among those recently paraded by the Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, in Abuja.
Haruna, a resident of Angwa Kanawa Dutse Abba, Zaria, Kaduna State, reportedly led a group of bandits—Shago Yaro, Tanimu Ayuba, and Lamido Dantajiri—to the home of his nephew, Alhaji Anas, identifying him and his family as lucrative kidnapping targets.
During the attack, which took place around 1 a.m., the criminals found that Alhaji Anas was not at home but proceeded to abduct his two wives, three children, his younger brother, and his brother’s wife.
According to reports, the victims were held captive for 60 days in Buruku Sabo Birni before their release. The ransom paid to secure their freedom included N13 million, four new motorcycles, and N300,000 worth of Airtel recharge cards. However, Haruna was given only N200,000 as his share of the ransom.
In addition, security operatives also paraded another suspect, Nyali Hassan, a known kidnapper who was found in possession of an AK-47 rifle. Prior to his arrest, IRT operatives had received credible intelligence about criminal elements involved in kidnapping and banditry across Makarfi, Bari, Yankin Rago, and Beli towns in both Kano and Kaduna states.
As part of a follow-up on gathered intelligence, security operatives arrested Nyali Hassan, a resident of Stara Rago, Kano, and recovered an AK-47 rifle with breech number 6047 along with two empty magazines from him.
During interrogation, Hassan reportedly confessed to being a kidnapper and identified his gang members as Kawuje, Moude, Babagida, Kabiru, and Umar. He further disclosed that two additional AK-47 rifles and ammunition used for their criminal operations were in the possession of Umar, who remains at large.
According to Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO) ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) is intensifying efforts to apprehend the remaining suspects and recover the outstanding arms and ammunition.
See Also: Abuja Woman Gets 5-Year Jail Term for Human Trafficking
Meanwhile, in an interview with the Nigerian Tribune, 50-year-old Ado Haruna admitted to his role in the abduction of his nephew, Alhaji Bashiru Anas. He stated:
“I’m into farming and vigilante work. It is true that I was the one who took bandits to Alhaji Anas’s house. Anas is my nephew, my elder sister’s son. I knew only one of the bandits who asked me to show them my nephew’s house.
“I led the bandits to his house but didn’t let him see me. We were living in the same community. They did not see Anas, so they took his wife and children. For the 60 days his family was in the bush, I was using Alhaji Anas’s phone to communicate with the bandits.
“The bandits were paid over N10 million as ransom, as I was made to know, but I was given N200,000 as my share. I bought maize with the money given to me.”
He added that he had no idea how the police fished him out. He said, “I didn’t know how the police got information about my involvement. I just saw them at my home. Life pushed me into crime.”
Hassan from Kano State also confessed, saying, “I’m 35 years old. I have two wives and 10 children. I’m into farming and cattle rearing, but I added kidnapping to it. I was carrying out the operations in Kano. I started a year ago. I have kidnapped eight people but got money from five of them. I collected between N1 million and N10 million as ransom. Some of the victims escaped while those guarding them slept off. I was targeting the rich people. There were six of us in my gang and had three AK-47 rifles. One of my members, Umar, got the rifles. I was arrested with an AK-47 rifle.”
He further explained how they get their victims, saying, “We usually carried out our operations by laying ambush for victims on the road or visiting their homes. We never killed any of our potential victims.”
Hassan also added that the police officers came to arrest him in his house. He stated, “I was in my house when police operatives came to me in the early hours of the day to pick me up. I know that the Qur’an does not support crime, but I’ll say that my friends misled me. They would be spending so much money whenever we were at a gathering, so I decided to join them.
“I bought a pickup van from my share of the proceeds. I had 20 cows that I inherited from my father.
“My friend, Umar, who is also one of the gang members, taught me how to shoot with an AK-47 rifle.”
Content Credit| Igbakuma Rita Doom
Picture credit | https://www.vanguardngr.com/
