By Ifeanyi Okolie

The Police in Lagos State, yesterday, said it had arrested two members of a notorious gang of kidnappers who were behind the kidnap of an Akure-based journalist with the Nigerian Television Authority, NTA, Mrs. Bunmi Oke, in March 2013.

Vangaurd gathered that the kidnappers who got N1 million before releasing the victim, were arrested by operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, Lagos, when they  attempted to rob a businessman of a large sum of money at Egbeda roundabout in Lagos.

Police sources, who gave the identities of the suspects as Bashir Raji Ejiniga, 35 and Christian Jacob, 34, relocated to Lagos from Delta State where they moved to when the police in Akure launched a manhunt for them and other members of the gang.

According to the source, “they came from Delta State where they escaped to from Akure after kidnapping the journalist.

“We arrested them on August 16, 2014 around 10am when they came to meet their gang members in Lagos for robbery operation.

“They were arrested after a tip-off. The Akure SARS was on their trail for long. But they were arrested by the Lagos SARS led by Superintendent Abba Kyari.”

Oke, while returning from work on the fateful day, was waylaid by four gunmen in front of a motherless babies home on Akure-Oba Ile Road. They ordered other occupants out of her vehicle before abducting her and later demanded for N8 million ransom.

Bashiru Raji, one of the suspects, who is from Odigbo, Ondo State told Vanguard that he was a mechanic married to two wives with seven children.

He said: “I was the one who drove the vehicle during the kidnap of Mrs Oke. We were a five-man gang and we collected N1 million as ransom.

“Her kidnap was my first job and I met the gang leader when one of my wives died. He was in my house during the burial smoking hemp.

“We picked the journalist in Akure and took her to our hideout in Odigbo. We later released her after we got N1 million ransom and I was given N200,000 as my share.

“We also kidnapped two other persons before the SARS in Akure declared us wanted and we fled to Delta State.

“A man in Lagos contacted us, saying there was an operation for us. So, we came but we were arrested. He told us on phone that he had a Mallam neighbour who had dollars.”

The other suspect, Jacob, a native of Nkanu, Enugu State, who is also married, said he got only N10,000 from the Akure operation.

He said: “I am a trader who used to sell foodstuff at Oja Oshodi in Akure. I used to sell Indian hemp too. My hemp farm was at Odogbolu in Ogun State.

“I sell the weeds to buyers from the north. I kept the weeds farm for three years. I got N150,000 from the northern buyers. The harvest of weeds is after seven months.”