A bereaved husband who was abducted alongside five other persons while conveying his wife’s corpse from Kano State to their hometown in Benue State has regained his freedom.
The six victims were reportedly released on Tuesday night after their relatives paid a ransom of N2.5 million to their abductors.
The husband and his companions were kidnapped around 8pm on Friday along Adoka Road in Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State while returning from Kano with the woman’s corpse.
They were said to have been approaching Okpoga, their destination in Okpokwu Local Government Area, when armed men intercepted their vehicle and whisked them away.
The incident sparked anxiety, particularly because the travellers were on their way home to bury a family member when they fell into the hands of kidnappers.
Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, confirmed the release of all six victims on Wednesday.
Ogiri, who spoke with journalists in Makurdi on the telephone, said the victims had regained their freedom but declined to disclose further details.
However, an Idoma social media influencer, Meddy Olotu, gave a startling account of the circumstances surrounding their release.
According to him, the kidnappers initially demanded N15 million for the freedom of the six victims but eventually accepted N2.5 million.
In an unusual twist, the abductors allegedly demanded 10 plates of food in addition to the ransom, claiming that they were hungry.
Olotu disclosed that the money and food were delivered to the kidnappers before the victims were released at about 11pm on Tuesday.
He said the husband who had travelled all the way from Kano with his wife’s corpse was eventually freed alongside his five companions.
The incident has once again drawn attention to the worsening insecurity and kidnapping menace along roads in Benue State, leaving travellers vulnerable even during journeys undertaken for family emergencies and funeral rites.
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