The Anambra State Police Command on Sunday said it had begun a search for the yet-to-be-identified gunmen who abducted three persons along the Nkpologwu-Akpo Road, Nkpologwu, in the Aguata Local Government Area of the state.
The police reaction was coming after the heavily armed assailants had kidnapped the three men at different locations of the community, earlier in the morning.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the victims, based outside Anambra, had just returned to attend an occasion that was held on Saturday, which was organised by the women of the community as part of their August meeting.
Eyewitnesses in the area said the assailants whisked the victims away in their own vehicles after double-crossing them.
The Sunday kidnapping incident was corroborated by a video footage currently circulating on social media, showing a somersaulted vehicle lying along the Nkpologwu-Akpo Road, with a voiceover saying it belonged to one of the kidnapped victims.
The kidnap is come on the heels of an attack by gunmen on a police checkpoint at the Omata junction, Nnewi-Oba Road, where a police officer was killed and another injured, on Friday.
A community leader, who craved anonymity for fear of being victimised, confirmed the development to our correspondent, saying the gunmen invaded the area at about 7:30am and whisked the victims away to an unknown destination.
He said, “Two of the victims, including a lawyer, are based in Abuja, while the third victim is based in Port Harcourt. The hoodlums waylaid and double-crossed their vehicles at different locations along the Nkpologwu-Akpo Road. After which, they whisked them away to an unknown destination.
“While the hoodlums were chasing one of them, his vehicle unfortunately sumersalted and in the process, they were able to take him away. His vehicle is still lying on the road.
“The suspected kidnappers had yet to contact the families of the victims to demand ransom or otherwise and we don’t know if it’s a case of kidnapping or not.”
The President-General of Nkpologwu Community, Prof. Ferdinand Ezeiruaku, who also confirmed the development to our correspondent, confirmed the incident occurred between 7:30am and 8am on Sunday.
He said the three men were kidnapped at different locations in the community by the heavily-armed men.
“The victims had just returned to attend an occasion that held on Saturday, which was organised by the women of the community as part of their August meeting,” he said.
When contacted, the spokesman for the Anambra State Police Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, also confirmed the development, saying that the police had cordoned off the area and launched a manhunt for the assailants.
Ikenga said, “Yes, we are aware of the abduction and investigations have begun. The area has been cordoned off by our operatives. A manhunt has been launched with a view to apprehending the assailants.
“We are also calling on the families of the victims to come forward to supply us with more details of the incident to help us in our investigations.”
