The Nigerian Navy has arrested two suspected kidnappers in Agba Agwatx Asarama in Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The Navy also rescued a victim, the captain of a tugboat who the suspect abducted off the coast of the Andoni-Bonny River.
The captain was said to be towing a barge from Ikot Abasi along the Bonny River when the miscreants who were in a speed boat intercepted him mid-sea.
Speaking to journalists in Port Harcourt, the rescued captain who did not want his name disclosed said he was whisked away from a nearby village by the kidnappers who posed as pipeline surveillance workers.
Narrating his ordeal, he said, “I am the captain of the tugboat and it was hired by a private company. We were coming from Ikot Abasi in Akwa Ibom State along the river (Bonny River).”
“When we got to that other river (Andoni River), some village boys came out and stopped us, telling us that they were surveillance boys and that they were in charge of the area. They asked my boss to give them N400,000.
“He begged them that we don’t have much money but they kept asking. He offered them N40,000, but they refused and now said they will take his captain and when he is ready let him send the money. They now took me in their boat away; when we reached their place, they told me that they had increased the money to N1 million.
“So they called my boss and told him to bring N1 million or they will hide me. It was in that process that I received a call and a naval man was talking to me, I gave them the phone. After talking with the navy man, they got angry, asking me why I called the Navy.”
Sunday Special gathered that after he made the call from the naval officer the area was raided by the Navy who arrested one of the suspects.
A source in the Nigerian Navy Forward Operating Base in Bonny, Rivers State who acted on an intelligence report about the incident quickly moved in after establishing the location of the crime scene and
“The Navy received an intelligence report that a kidnap was ongoing and immediately responded to the incident area and followed up with locals on the intel they received.
“The Navy team located the criminals in an enclave within the area where the kidnappers were believed to be hiding the captured victim. However, on sighting the Navy team approaching, the kidnappers quickly fled into surrounding bushes and abandoned the captain who was then rescued,” the source stated.
Meanwhile, gunmen suspected to be pirates have killed four operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Bakana, Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State.
Though the circumstances leading to their death is still sketchy, it was gathered that the pirates ambushed the operatives in the waterway.
In a viral video that surfaced, the remains of the dead NSCDC were seen packed in a boat floating at the river bank.
According to the video, some officials of the corps and sympathisers identified two of the victims as Chibuzo and Chief Priest.
It was gathered that two of the victims have already been buried according to Islamic rites, while the bodies of the others were deposited at an undisclosed hospital mortuary.
The State Command of the NSCDC has maintained a studied silence over the incident since the news of the unfortunate incident into the public domain on Friday.
Efforts to reach the state NSCDC spokesman, Olufemi Ayodele, was unsuccessful as he did not answer several calls put across to his mobile.
Also, he had yet to reply to a text message sent to him as of the time of filing this report on Saturday evening.
