Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Suspected kidnappers have reportedly abducted a retired senior officer of the Department of State Security (DSS), Peter Unogwu, commonly known as ‘Naraguta’, in Benue State.
Daily Sun gathered that the victim was abducted on Wednesday at about 5 pm on his way his village in Igumale, in Ado Local Government Area of the state.
According to a family source who gave his name as Onazi Agbo, the victim who operated a four-star hotel in Igumale was said to be travelling on the Otukpo-Utonkon-Igumale road when the kidnappers waylaid him, ordered him out of his car and forcibly took him to an unknown destination.
Our source who spoke by telephone said Unogwu, a former Chief Security Officer of Chevron Nigeria Limited, was abducted in front of the site of the Igumale cement factory in Ado Local Government Area.
Agbo, who noted that Ado local government has become rife with kidnappings, appealed to security agencies to intervene in the security challenges being faced by the Igumale community.
Unogwu’s abduction comes barely one month after a popular businessman from the area was kidnapped and only released after he paid out millions of naira in ransom.
A family source told reporters that, at the time of filing this report, Unogwu’s abductors were yet to open discussion with the family or demand a ransom.
When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Catherine Anene, who confirmed the incident, said that the police are already on the trail of the kidnappers.
“The former DSS man was kidnapped yesterday. Our men are already trailing the kidnappers,” she said.