Family urges IG to fish out killers of businessman

By Vincent Ujumadu
AWKA— The family of Dim of Osumenyi in Nnewi South Local Government Area of Anambra State has urged the Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Hafeez Ringim, to fish out the policemen in Delta State who, it alleged, have questions to answer in connection with the abduction and subsequent killing of their son, Mr. Maxwell Obiajulu Dim.

Maxwell was until his death, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Diamond Steel Limited, Onitsha, Anambra State and Obi-Links Petroleum Limited, Asaba, Delta State.

Unknown gunmen had on the evening of Wednesday, October 6, 2010, stormed the Obi-Links filling station, located opposite the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Asaba, along the Asaba/Benin Expressway, abducted Dim and whisked him off to an unknown destination.

He was said to have been shot severally at close range, thereby shattering his two legs before they hounded him into their waiting vehicle and zoomed off to the unknown destination.

Solicitor to the family, Chief J.R. Nduka, said the killers of Mr. Dim might be walking free in the society and causing more harm, adding that though some policemen were arrested in connection with the death of Dim, they were later released.

According to him, 24 hours after abducting Dim, the kidnappers allegedly established contact with his family during which they demanded N50 million as ransom for his release.

Three days later, he said, both parties allegedly settled for N12 million which was handed to them at their choice hideout in Asaba without the victim’s release to his people.

“Ironically, the family waited in vain for his anticipated release and re-union with them till five days after the ransom payment had been made, and consequently raised an alarm, but to no avail.

“However, two weeks after, the kidnappers directed them to a bush somewhere at Ibuzor Road in Asaba, and on reaching there with a police escort, they found a lifeless and decomposing corpse of Dim,” he said.

Corroborating the incident, the younger brother of the victim, Mr. Emmanuel Dim said their brothers’ captors established contact with the family after he was kidnapped and had negotiations that led to the payment of the ransom, but later switched off their phone after collecting the agreed money.

Nduka stated that when they reported the matter to the police in Asaba, one DSP Lucky was assigned to investigate it and they also hired an independent investigator to do the investigation, adding that along the line, the independent investigator discovered a man who was suspected to have supplied the weapons used by the kidnappers. He said that though the man was arrested, “but up till date, we don’t know the outcome of the investigation on the suspected weapon supplier”.

He said amid sobs: “We are mourning the loss of Mr. Dim but more worrisome is the fact that the criminals are walking about freely and doing more harm. From the autopsy report, nobody would have believed that the victim was not killed even before the payment of the ransom”.

He said the family was suspecting that those who abducted his brother were merely hired assassins who used the ransom as a cover-up for his assassination, based on the way they shot at him, because apart from the fact that immediately after he was abducted and whisked away, some group of armed robbers raided the filling station and allegedly carted away some valuable items.

Besides, he stated that there were some groups of unknown persons who went to the filling station and told the security men on duty that they heard the filling station was up for sale and that they were there to buy it.
He said efforts to get the people who came to buy the filling station and to find out from them who told them that the filling station was for sale, proved abortive.