THE Delta State Police Command has arrested a 54-year-old woman for allegedly staging her own kidnap and demanding a ransom of ₦15million from her brother while attempting to extort her family.
The woman, identified simply as Umadi, claimed she was abducted by unknown gunmen while on her way to purchase medicine and subsequently contacted her younger brother to report that her purported kidnappers were demanding N15million ransom for her release.
The Command’s spokesman, Bright Edafe (SP), explained that the incident was reported on October 23, at the Ogwuashi-Uku Police Division as a suspected case of kidnapping.
Edafe stated that following the report, the Commissioner of Police (CP) directed operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit in Ubuluku to investigate the case and ensure the woman’s rescue.
However, he said an intelligence-led investigation by the operatives led to the discovery that the alleged abduction was a plot by the woman herself to extort money from her younger brother and her family.
Edafe, in a video, expressed shock that a woman in her 50s would engage in self-kidnapping, as previous such cases largely involved teenagers and young people.
He said: “In the past, we had cases of self-kidnap or fake kidnap done by underage or, let me say, teenagers of 15, 16, 17 to 20 years, but we have never had a case that involved a 54-year-old elderly woman.
“It is quite unfortunate that she faked her own kidnap because she wanted to extort her younger brother of N15million.”
During her interrogation, the suspect admitted plotting the fake abduction and contacting her younger brother to say she had been kidnapped.
When Edafe asked her how much ransom she demanded, the woman responded that she requested N15million.
She also admitted telling her brother that the supposed kidnappers would kill her if the money was not paid.
Asked why she decided to put her brother through such an ordeal, despite his having not treated her badly, Umadi struggled to provide a good explanation.
Edafe disclosed that the suspect claimed she had been held captive for 12 days after staging the abduction on October 20, but investigations revealled that the incident was a calculated attempt to extort her younger brother, who had initially believed she was indeed in captivity.
The Command’s spokesman commended the suspect’s brother for reporting the incident to the Police and stressed the need for prompt alert of security agencies whenever relatives receive threats of kidnapping or ransom demands.
Edafe said the suspect could not have acted alone, as investigators had identified some individuals allegedly involved in the conspiracy and were already on their trail for possible arrest.
According to him: “Some of the people she conspired with were seen on their trail, because obviously she didn’t do it alone, and we are definitely going to arrest them,”
The Command vowed to continue its investigation into the incident and pursue the fleeing accomplices until arrested.
