The family of a police officer, Inspector Kamarudeen Bello, who was abducted in a mosque in Ogun State last week, paid the sum of N700,000 to secure his release on Sunday, Daily Trust learnt.
Gunmen reportedly invaded the mosque at Soyoye in Abeokuta North Local Government Area of the State, last week where they kidnapped the policeman and two other worshippers.
- ‘Tell the truth about this war’, Ukrainian president’s moving speech at 2022 Grammys
- NIN: FG orders telcos to bar outgoing calls from unlinked SIMs
A source said the abductors had contacted the families of the victims, demanding N5 million ransom for each victim.
The source said, “The wife of Inspector Kamarudeen was contacted with the phone number of one of the kidnapped victims.”
However, it was gathered on Sunday that the policeman and the other victims regained freedom after payment of the ransom.
“I don’t know how much each of them paid, but I think the police Inspector parted with about N700,000 before he was released,” a source said.
The officer, who is also the chief imam of the mosque, is attached to one of the divisional police headquarters in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
It was gathered that Bello’s wife had given birth to a baby four days before the incident.
When contacted, the Police spokesman in the state, Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the abduction and release of the victims on Sunday.
Oyeyemi, however, said he was not aware if any ransom was paid.
