*With The Money, They Engaged In Lavish Spending, Leisure Trips To Foreign Nations, CP Says
*Two Were Remaining Suspects Wanted In Highly Publicized Udi LGA Church Abductions
By Sylvia Kodilichukwu, Enugu
Enugu State Police Command has arrested and paraded 14 kidnap suspects involved in various kidnap operations in and outside the state.
Briefing newsmen today at the Command’s headquarters in Enugu, the state Commissioner of Police (CP), Mamman Bitrus Giwa, said among them were two remaining suspects linked to the 2 August kidnapping raid on St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Affa, Udi Local Government Area (LGA) of the state, who, he revealed, fled to Port Harcourt following the operational pressure mounted by joint security operatives.
The CP said: “Further intelligence-led operations by the Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Violent Crime Response Unit (AK-VCRU) led to the arrest of two additional male suspects linked to the Affa Church kidnapping.
“Preliminary investigation reveals that, after fleeing Enugu, the suspects regrouped with their cohorts in Port Harcourt and abducted another victim, who was released after a ransom of ₦5m was paid.”
CP Giwa noted that all the 14 suspects were arrested on various dates in June, July and August 2026 in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Enugu, Kogi, Nasarawa, Rivers, Kwara and Taraba States.
The suspects, he said, have also confessed to involvement in several recent and past kidnapping incidents along Enugu–Ugwuogo–Opi–Nsukka Road; Obioma–9th Mile–Umulumgbe–Okpatu Road; Eke–Affa–Egede–Ezinze axis; and various locations in Ezeagu LGA.
“Specifically, preliminary investigation has linked the suspects to the following armed kidnapping incidents: the abduction of a male victim at Mgbabuowa/Aguobuowa, Ezeagu LGA, on 25th May, 2026, during which ₦5m was obtained as ransom; the abduction of two male victims and the shooting and murder of a female victim at Obioma, Udi LGA, on 9th May, 2026, during which the gang obtained $28,700 as ransom; the abduction of two male victims along the Eke–Ezinze Road, Udi LGA, on 10th April, 2026, for which $70,000 was obtained as ransom; and the kidnapping of seven victims at Obinaofia, Ezeagu LGA, on 12th April, 2026, during which ₦25m was obtained as ransom,” he explained.
The CP revealed that the suspects, who are linked to membership of an organised criminal network operating from different parts of the country, usually came into the state to plan and execute operations before disappearing to their respective locations.
“The network is aided by an Enugu-based member who operates a tricycle and provides transportation for the gang members, their firearms and other criminal implements to and from operational locations.
“Another Enugu-based member provides intelligence that enables the gang to evade security surveillance and identify suitable targets and locations,” he added.
According to Giwa, investigation revealed that the suspects laundered and concealed proceeds of their criminal activities through investments in livestock and different properties, and engaged in lavish spending as well as leisure and trips to foreign nations such as Cameroun.
He said the Command was still conducting more investigations to establish the suspects’ involvement in other kidnapping and violent-crime incidents within and outside Enugu State, identify and arrest other members of the syndicate, and recover additional firearms, ammunition and other criminal proceeds.
“Upon conclusion of investigation, the suspects will be charged to court in accordance with extant laws”, he added.
The Command displayed five AK-47 rifles, two pump-action guns, one locally fabricated firearm, 310 rounds of live 7.62 x 39mm ammunition, eight live cartridges, and seven empty AK-47 magazines recovered from the suspects.
CP Giwa credited the successes recorded by the Command to the availability of state-of-the-art security infrastructure, effectiveness of sustained intelligence gathering, ICT-enabled investigation, inter-agency collaboration, inter-state cooperation and coordinated operational policing adopted by the Command.
He commended Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah and the Inspector General of Police Taju Disu for their leadership and support in ensuring security and order in the state.
“I would also like to express my profound gratitude to Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, for his forward looking leadership and for making the state safe.
“I equally commend other security agencies for their collaborative support, while also thanking members of the public for their continued cooperation,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, one of the suspects spoke to newsmen, saying his gang operated along the stretch of Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, earning multimillions of Naira in ransoms before they were busted by security forces.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Some of the suspects (backing camera) and some of the items recovered by the police.
