Police arrest couple for faking kidnap to extort N5m
The Lagos State Police Command has arrested a couple for an alleged self-kidnapping scheme aimed at obtaining a N5 million ransom.
The Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Police Force, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday, as he warned citizens to desist from self-kidnapping.
Adejobi added that one Albarka Sukuya in Plateau State was arrested for staging his kidnap on several occasions, and one Nnamdi Agu, also faked his kidnap in Abuja in an attempt to defraud his family.
The statement read, “In Lagos, a couple was arrested for alleged self-kidnapping scheme aimed at obtaining a N5 million ransom recently.
“The husband, Doubara David Yabrifa, a 53-year-old technician, and the wife Regina Yabrifa, a 48-year-old body massager and bone setter, were apprehended after a family member reported the purported kidnapping.
“The couple confessed to planning the self-kidnap to raise N3 million to purchase a property in Badagry, Lagos. The husband justified the act, citing financial difficulties and lack of support from relatives. Both were arrested and subsequently charged to court.
“Also, one Albarka Sukuya of Jenta Apata, Jos, has been notorious for staging his kidnap on several occasions and received ransoms from unsuspecting members of the community in Plateau State.
“Similarly, on 20th January, 2024, a young man, Nnamdi Agu, faked his kidnap in Abuja in an attempt to defraud one of his family members who resides around River Park Estate, Abuja, to make money to pay for his personal pleasures. The Police, in a swift response, foiled the staged kidnapping, and arrested the suspect.
“It is obvious that the suspect and many others leverage on the prevailing instances of kidnapping and plan to engage in such criminal and deceptive acts of staged or self-kidnapping to make money.”
The FPRO warned against the trends of self-kidnapping, stating that it is a punishable offence under the law.
He added, “The Force hereby cautions members of the public to be wary of this trend while those with intent to venture into these criminal acts should desist as the police will leave no stone unturned to cause such suspects to face the full wrath of the law.
“Equally, we vehemently encourage the media and social media influencers, bloggers, etc., to constantly verify news before broadcasting such, not to create panic and jeopardize our security arrangements.”
The PUNCH reports that the scourge of abductions which has strangulated social and economic activities in the North-West has spread nationwide as bandits and other criminal elements have moved their operations into the major cities across the country.
