A director of the Rivers State Board of Internal Revenue Service, identified as Aribibia Fubara, abducted by gunmen has regained his freedom after spending 11 days in captivity.
Fubara was reportedly kidnapped by a group of six armed men who came through the Okirika Waterfront in a speedboat to the Marine Base area of Port Harcourt, the state capital, on August 25, 2024.
PUNCH Metro reports that the gunmen had stormed the director’s usual sit-out area in a commando style and shot indiscriminately into the air, identified their target and whisked him away using their boat.
Earlier, a family source told our reporter that Fubara’s captors contacted them and demanded a ransom of N40m before allowing him to breathe the air of freedom.
The source who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the matter said, “The kidnappers called the family last week and demanded N40m. While the family was trying to plead with them, they switched off the phone.”
When contacted again on Sunday, the source said Fubara had been freed and reunited with his family but was silent if any ransom was paid to the miscreants.
He stated, “I can tell you that he has been released. He was released on Thursday. The kidnappers called the family to meet them at a location near Bonny.
“But he (Fubara) finally arrived at his residence in Port Harcourt on Friday morning and now with his family who have been in a joyous mood. He is in good condition.”
The spokesperson for the state police command, Grace Iringe-Koko, also confirmed his release, saying, “We are still on the trail of the kidnappers to ensure they are apprehended and prosecuted.”
Similarly, 10 boat passengers who were abducted by suspected pirates while travelling from Bonny Island in Rivers State to Port Harcourt on September 2, 2024, have been freed.
Recall that the state Chairman of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Rivers Commercial District, Israel Pepple, had disclosed to PUNCH Metro that the passengers were travelling from Bonny to Port Harcourt when the hoodlums struck, even as he decried the incessant pirate attacks on the waterways.
A source who said he did not have the authority to speak on the matter told our reporter on Sunday that the pirates abandoned all the 10 passengers in a creek at the Bonny channel following the pressure mounted by security operatives.
When contacted, the police spokesperson, Iringe-Koko, also confirmed the release of the travellers, saying they regained their freedom on Saturday afternoon.
She stated, “Yes, all 10 of them have been released. The police and sister security agencies have been on a manhunt for the kidnappers and they could not bear it and they had to release them.”
