NEWS P8

NEWS P8

Kidnapped famous APC singer released on N2.8m ransom

From Yusha’u A. Ibrahim, Kano

A famous singer of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Kano, Dauda Adamu Kahutu, also

known as Rarara who was kidnapped, has been released after he paid a ransom

of N2.8m.

Confirming the incident to Daily Trust yesterday, Rarara said he was

picked by his abductors on Thursday at his residence located behind

Sahad Store, along Zoo road in the Kano metropolis.

Rarara explained that his abductors trailed him to his residence

around 1am of the fateful Thursday and forced him into his personal

car and drove away with him to Tudun-Fulani around Darmanawa quarters

also in the state metropolis.

He said, “I was about to enter my house when suddenly four young men

appeared. One of them slapped me while others pointed guns at me. They

forced me into my car and one of them drove the car, the other sat in

the front and the remaining two accompanied me in the rear sit. I was

put in the middle with my face looking down.

“They went round within the city for about 30 minutes to ensure that

the car had no tracker or security before they finally headed to

Tudun-Fulani quarters. On our way to Tudun-Fulani, they told me that

they were hired assassins paid to kill me but if I had some money

they could change their mission and I said I had money. I gave them all

the money I had, which was N2.8m. On reaching Tudun-Fulani, they directed me

to remove my clothes and to lie down on the ground, and I obliged. They

zoomed off with my car and the money they had collected.”

He said his first impression was that the kidnappers were

security operatives because he was once arrested by DSS when he

sang the song of ‘Zuwan Mai Malfa Kano’ but when they informed him

about their mission he then realized that they were not security men.

The famous singer also told Daily Trust that his kidnappers were

speaking Hausa fluently and they were between the ages of 30 and 35

years.

However, he said he suspected an informant among the kidnappers,

explaining, “I suspect that one of them knows me very well because he

keeps on manipulating his voice whenever he wanted to speak so that I

could not recognize his voice. Anytime he wanted to speak he would change

his voice. He spoke in different voices about four times.”

When contacted, the Kano Police Public Relations Officer DSP Magaji Musa Majia, said the singer had personally spoken to him about the snatching of his car and money but never mentioned the issue of kidnapping.

Majia said, “Rarara reported the matter to our formation at Filin Hokey and our men had swung into action with a view to recovering the car, money and also arrest the criminals.”

…….Police rescue kidnapped victim in C/River

From Eyo Charles, Calabar

Commissioner of Police in Cross River State Henry Fadairo has confirmed that men of the Special Anti-Ribbery Squad rescued one Bartholomew Effiong at Bacoco community in Calabar Municipality from his abductors.

Fadairo said his men rescued him in the early hours of Friday April 8.

Briefing journalists over the weekend at his headquarters in Calabar, Fadairo said that the victim was kidnapped on April 7 2016, by heavily armed gunmen while his Camry car was also snatched from him.

“In gathering intelligence, SARS team quickly proceeded to Bacoco community, surveyed the area. The next day, being 8th of April, the suspects were sighted by our men and heavy shooting occurred. We over-powered them but they escaped into a nearby bush with gunshot wounds. The victim and the vehicle were recovered while investigation is on top gear to arrest the fleeing robbers/kidnapping,’’ he said.

Benue: Gunmen kill another Okada rider in Makurdi

… As , Police recover 2 corpses in Otukpo LGA

From Hope Abah, Makurdi

Some gunmen in the early hours of yesterday again killed a commercial motorcycle rider (Okada) whose name was given as James Chambe, in Makurdi metropolis of Benue State.

The latest killing brings the number of Okada riders shot dead in Makurdi with their motorcycles taken away by the assassins to four within the past two weeks.

Police spokesman, ASP. Moses Yamu confirmed the killing, saying that the perpetrator who might have posed as a passenger could have cajoled the victim to the quiet area along Bauchi Crescent at High Level in Makurdi about 3am yesterday before shooting him and making away with his motorcycle.

He said the Command was yet to make any arrest on the matter but warned Okada operators to desist from doing their business at odd hours.

Chairman of Makurdi branch of Benue State Motorcycle Riders Association (BEMOA), Austin Akaa identified the deceased victim as one of his members known by the name, James Chambe.

Akaa explained that the victim had conveyed a criminal he probably thought was a passenger to the Bauchi Crescent area where he met his end.

He urged the state government to revert to the policy of the immediate past administration in the state which allowed commercial motorcyclists to ply their trade only between 6am and 8pm daily while appealing to his colleagues to shun greed by not operating at odd hours.

In another development, the Police in Benue state yesterday said that they recovered two dead bodies from a farm in Ondo community of Ugboju in Otukpo local government area of the state.

Daily Trust reports that crisis leading to the death of some people had occurred in the community few days before the Benue South rerun election held February between some persons believed to belong to Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC).

It was allegedly by the locals that three people whose name were given as; Okwoche Omale, Andrew Adaji and Audu Okpachu Okopi were killed in the process of that crisis while many houses were burnt and residents fled their homes.

Our correspondent gathered that the latest killing of the two persons whose bodies were found in a farm was allegedly traceable to the same lingering crisis.

Police spokesman, Moses Yamu who confirmed that the policemen recovered the corpses from the farm after the persons were said to be missing suspected that their killings might not be unconnected with the trouble between two brothers in the community.

Yamu said that the Otukpo local government council caretaker chairman, Ijachi Ude who hailed from the community and his younger brother Eje Ude had been at logger head with each other and that the chairman in whose farm the dead bodies were found had earlier reported to the police that the persons were missing.

“The dead bodies were recovered on Thursday with gunshots in their heads. One person was arrested in connection with the killing,” he said.

Daily Trust reports that apart from the tussle between the caretaker chairman who belongs to the APC while his brother is of the PDP, the Ondo community had been enmeshed in unrest over land tussle for several years now.

NCDSC seals 2 private guard coys in Yobe

Hamisu Kabir Matazu, Damaturu

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has sealed two private guard companies for operating illegally in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital.

The Yobe State Commandant of the NSCDC, Alhaji Kabiru Gambo who disclosed this yesterday in an interview with Daily Trust in Damaturu, said that disciplinary measures would be taken against the illegal operators.

Kabir said it was the mandate of the NSCDC to recommend for the Minister of Interior the registration of the private guard companies, and that the two affected companies had no record with the NSCDC.

“It`s through their record with us that we inspect their premises, monitor their activities and supervise their personnel recruitments to ensure that foreigners do not operate PGC, and that the registered PGCs are run by credible persons, not those either dismissed or removed from office for disciplinary reasons,” Kabir said.

He disclosed that Yobe has 35 private guard companies operating, out of which 25 were fully registered while eight were processing their register.