By Our Crime Correspondent
Eleven kidnap victims in Edo State on Friday narrated how they miraculously escaped from captivity after their kidnappers slept off.
The victims who said they were kidnapped inside their farms located in Estako West local government area of the State, related their stories to journalists on Friday, at the State Police Command headquarters in Benin.
They disclosed that the abductors slept off the following day after walking all night with them in the bush.
One of the victims, Destiny Braimah, said he was returning from his farm on the fateful day when he ran into six men armed with guns and cutlasses.
Braimah who said the kidnappers also abducted 10 other persons and took them into the forest.
He added that they heard the sound of police shooting while they were being marched into the bush by their abductors.
“I was coming from the farm when I met six of them armed with guns and machetes. They also captured others making 11 victims.
“They took us from one bush to another. It was around six p.m and we heard the police shooting. They made us walk throughout the night.
“We got to a place and they told us to hide. They were very tired and they slept off. That was how we ran to the police. The kidnappers beat us and maltreated us,” he said.
Also speaking, another victim, Gloria Inyanugbo, who was kidnapped earlier, said she spent four days at the kidnappers’ den.
The victim who was able to identify her abductors, said her husband had to pay the sum of ₦3 million for her release and another huge sum to buy hard drugs and foods for the kidnappers.
She said: “I was kidnapped on the 12th of June, 2026, when I was working inside the farm. They asked how much I have in my account after taking me inside the bush. I spent four days. until my husband raised ₦3 million and another ₦300,000 to buy hard drugs, food and other items.
“The community vigilante nabbed two of them inside the bush and the police arrested others through tracking. I saw one of them that boasted that nobody can do anything to him. I can’t imagine that the police could arrrest them.”
Meanwhile, the State Commissioner of Police, Monday Agbonika, announced that 38 kidnapped victims were successfully rescued in the month of June, through intelligence driven operations and coordinated tactical responses carried out across different parts of the state.
According to him, the achievements underscore the Command’s unwavering determination to rid Edo State of criminal elements while demonstrating its proactive and relentless approach to tackling violent crime.
The Commissioner expressed appreciation to law-abiding residents of Edo State for their continued cooperation with the police, noting that timely intelligence and information supplied by members of the public have remained vital to the Command’s operational successes.
“Security is a shared responsibility, and your collaboration continues to make the difference,” he said.
