Anebi
The Edo State Police Command has arrested three out of the four-man kidnapping gang who had collected over N75 million ransom from 11 victims between January and April 2025.
Moses Yamu, the image maker of the Command, who disclosed this to newsmen in Benin City, said that the kidnapping syndicate had been terrorizing Benin City and environs.
DAILY POST reports that Moses Yamu gave the names of the three arrested suspects as Asemota Osamede, 38, Michael Tomminiwei, 43, and Kelly Aitoya, 34.
Yamu said the suspects were arrested after successfully collecting the sum of N7.5 million ransom from one Mrs Vivian Diode, a sawmill operator at Eyean, Aduduwa along the Benin-Auchi road, Benin City.
He said the suspects, who allegedly kidnapped the victim on April 10, 2025, collected N1.5 million from her bank account while in captivity and also collected N6 million ransom from her family members before releasing her.
DAILY POST, however, gathered that a week after her release, the suspects also called the family members to demand another N3 million.
It was gathered that the suspects threatened to kidnap her again or assassinate her if the family failed to pay the money.
It was learnt that the development prompted the family to report the incident to the police and the anti-cultism unit of the command.
The operatives swiftly responded and, in the process, arrested three suspects in connection with the kidnapping of the woman.
The Public Relations Officer of the Command, Yamu, said the suspects who confessed to the crime belonged to a four-man kidnapping syndicate operating with one AK-47 rifle and two pump-action guns in Benin City.
He said the investigation has been completed and the suspect will be charged in Court.
He said the commissioner of police in the state, Monday Agbonika, restated the command’s commitment to the safety of lives and property, warning that there is no safe haven for criminals in the state.
Edo: Police arrest three suspected kidnappers after collecting over N75 million ransom
