By Chizoba Ogbcehe Abuja
Nigeria Police has arrested a former Councillor with the Okene local government area of Kogi state, Iliyasu Suleiman, 44, and four others for the kidnap of mother of the Kogi state Governor, Malam Yahaya Bello. Parading the suspects yesterday at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, the Force Public Relations Offi cer (FPRO), CSP Jimoh Moshood, said their arrest was sequel to the directive of the Inspector General of Police, IGP Ibrahim Idris, on kidnapping in Abuja, Niger and Kogi states.
He said: “Sequel to the IGP’s directive on the kidnapping in Abuja, Niger and Kogi states, the operatives of the IGP Intelligence Response Team (IRT) swung into action after the arrest of Danladi Ibrahim aka Apayi, in follow up to his confession on several robberies and kidnapping in Kogi, Abuja, and Niger states.” Moshood stated that three more members of the ‘deadly kidnapping/terrorist gang’ were arrested in Okene, including Iliyasu Obadaki aka Doctor, 35, and Alhaji Nasiru, 43, a native of Inike village, Suleja, Niger state and Hafi z Yakubu, 26. He explained that investigation further revealed that Nasiru was a member of Danjuma’s robbery gang and keeps custody of the gang’s arms and ammunition.
All the suspects, he said, had confessed to the kidnapping of the governor’s mother in 2014 and many other robbery and kidnapping in the FCT, Kogi and Niger states. Fielding questions from journalists, the suspects admitted involvement in the kidnapping of the governor’s mother and reportedly received varying sums of money from Suleiman while the ex-councillor claimed to have got the money from another gang member, Tijani Bakare, said to be in police custody in Kogi state for a diff erent crime. Asked how much he made from the kidnapping, the excouncillor claimed he did not get anything, but accepted receiving a 408 Peugeot car reportedly from Bakare
