Man who kidnapped 2 kids arrested after collecting ransom in Plateau

Residents of the NEPA community in the Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State have apprehended a suspected kidnapper who collected N1.5 million ransom from the relatives of his victims.

The State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Alabor Alfred, who confirmed the incident, said the suspect was being investigated at the anti-kidnapping unit.

A vigilante in the NEPA community, who pleaded anonymity, on Thursday said that after the residents caught the suspect, he was immediately handed over to the vigilantes in the area.

He added that the suspect was later taken to the Laranto Police Station.

While narrating the incident, the vigilante said the abductor had kidnapped two children, one four years old and the other five years old.

However, according to him, after receiving a ransom of N1.5 million, the suspect refused to release the children.

The vigilante member added that when the suspect returned to the unoccupied building where he was keeping the minors, passers-by heard the kids crying and immediately rushed towards the building.

“Upon arrival, the kidnapper, who was with the minors, jumped out of the window, but as people screamed and shouted ‘kidnapper,’ men and women from the community came out in large numbers and caught him.

“The resident then handed him over to the community vigilante group which took him to Laranto Police Station along with the sum of N1,492,000 that he had already collected from the parents of the victims,” the man said.