From Okey Sampson, Aba
Soldiers of the 144 Battalion of the Nigerian Army, Asa, Abia State have killed two alleged kidnappers, who operated in the commercial city of Aba and rescued two of their victims. It was gathered that one Mrs. Evans, a retired civil servant and his son, Joseph, a secondary school student were abducted last weekend by five gunmen.
Mrs. Evans and the son said to be her only male child were said to be returning from their village, Nvosi in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government, when their abductors, five of them laid siege as they approached the gate to their building in Aba.
Daily Sun also gathered that as the woman attempted to alight from the Mercedes 500 ML SUV to open the gate, the kidnappers pushed her back into the vehicle and drove off.
The kidnappers were said to have demanded a ransom of N10million, which they later reduced to N5million.
However, after keeping their victims for three days and nobody came forward to pay the ransom, the abductors reduced it to N300, 000 and later released the woman to go and look for the money while still keeping her son.
It was while the woman took the ransom to where the kidnappers asked her to drop it that she ran into soldiers who decided to track down the hoodlums.
While the soldiers laid in wait, one of the kidnappers simply identified as Chinenye from Obingwa Local Government, came to collect the ransom and was arrested thereafter.
Chinenye then took the soldiers to a building at Umuojima in Osisioma Ngwa Local Government said to belong to the gang’s leader named Victor, a deportee from Libya, where the victim was kept.
A source said on sighting the soldiers, the kidnappers opened fire and in the gun duel that ensued, two of the kidnappers were killed, while three escaped. The building where the victims were kept was equally demolished during the operation that lasted for hours.
When contacted, the commanding officer of 144 battalion of the Nigerian Army, Asa, Lt. Col. Kazim Sidi confirmed the incident. He said his men were on the trail of the fleeing kidnappers.
