By Aaior K. Comfort

The Delta State Police Command has apprehended six suspected kidnappers and recovered over N2.3 million in ransom money that had been paid by their victims. This was disclosed by the Commissioner of Police for Delta State, CP Abaniwanda Olufemi, during a press briefing on Thursday, where 16 suspects were paraded for various crimes.

Olufemi highlighted the significant progress made by the command under his leadership, emphasizing efforts to increase police visibility and conduct raids on black spots and criminal hideouts across the state’s 25 local government areas.

He detailed the arrest, stating, “Acting on credible intelligence, operatives from the Ebrumede Division, while on patrol, intercepted a tricycle carrying six passengers. Upon sighting the police, the suspects attempted to flee, but our operatives pursued and apprehended them. A search of the tricycle led to the discovery of N2,344,000 in ransom money and several suspected stolen phones.”

Further investigations revealed that the phones belonged to kidnapping victims, and the money was part of the ransom paid for their release.

In another operation, the anti-kidnapping squad conducted a sting operation in the Umunede forest area, rescuing two individuals who had been kidnapped along the Asaba-Benin Expressway. The Commissioner noted that the police acted swiftly on credible information, and upon realizing the police were closing in, the kidnappers abandoned their victims and fled.

CP Olufemi also expressed concern over the prevalence of hard drugs in the state. During a stop-and-search operation along the Asaba-Agbor Expressway, the command’s Dragon Patrol team intercepted a 39-year-old man, Jammed Abdulahi Shola, driving a green Toyota vehicle. A search of the vehicle uncovered a significant quantity of hard drugs, including 320 packs of codeine and 125 sachets of tramadol.