Tension has gripped residents of Dubai Estate near the office of the Federal Road Safety Corps in Awka, the Anambra State capital, as gunmen have kidnapped no fewer than six persons in the area in less than three weeks.
PUNCH Metro gathered that out of the six victims abducted, three persons had been released after the payment of about N76m ransom to the yet-to-be-identified kidnappers.
Residents of the area told our correspondent in separate interviews on Wednesday that the new wave of kidnappings had sent panic into the area as they had been forced to return home early while resorting to taking another route to get to their various houses, lamenting that motorists had avoided dropping passengers at the junction from 7 pm.
According to them, the kidnappers, who operate along the ever-busy Onitsha-Awka-Enugu Expressway into the estate, laid a siege to the area daily where they always force innocent victims into a waiting vehicle before zooming off.
The estate, located near the NNPC Petrol Station, connects Dozzy Estate and Four Way Junction before the second gate of Ngozika Estate.
Our correspondent gathered that the kidnappers shot one of the victim’s cars and set it ablaze for escaping from them.
One of the eyewitnesses, Chief Uche Ogani, said, “A Toyota Camry salon car that was burnt in front of a petrol station along the expressway belonged to a young man who fled when the kidnappers tried to abduct him.
“The gunmen shot at the car and it went up in flames while the boy ran into a building in the area for safety. One of the people kidnapped included a professor, who paid N31m in ransom while a young couple, driving in a Toyota Highlander, also paid a ransom of N45m before they were released.
“Residents are now forced to return home early, and take alternative routes to avoid the danger zone.”
Also speaking, a shuttle bus driver, Ejikeme Uzoma, who plies the route said, “I dropped two persons at that Estate junction one evening and as I was about driving off, the suspected kidnappers shouted at me to stop and carry them. When I looked, I saw a woman who was being taken away by some people with guns and another person was on the ground in a pool of blood.”
This development was corroborated by a voice note, which emanated from an eyewitness and a resident of the area, further alleging that the suspected kidnappers had turned the hitherto peaceful area into a danger zone.
When contacted on the development, the Anambra State Police Command spokesman, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, said the command was investigating the situation, but pleaded that it was not proper to begin to expose the undercover operations as it would jeopardise intelligence gathering.
He said, “The command intercepted the voice note made by a yet unidentified individual of the alleged abduction/kidnapping incident and has made deliberate security arrangements to nip in the bud such an incident or otherwise in the state capital.
“The command encourages the victims to come forward to assist us with information for an investigation, please.”
