Dare Babalola
The Anambra State Police Command has arrested two suspects involved in a conspiracy and staged kidnapping plot, where the victim’s boyfriend collaborated with an accomplice to extort ₦240,000 from the victim’s parents.
SP Tochukwu Ikenga, spokesman for the Anambra State Police Command, announced in a Saturday press statement that the arrests followed a major breakthrough in several cases under investigation by the command over the past two weeks.
Ikenga stated that operatives of the Rapid Response Squad, Awkuzu, arrested the suspects on March 14 and recovered several items, including cash, from them.
The statement read, “The Anambra State Police Command has recorded significant breakthroughs in several reported cases under investigation within the last two weeks.
“Among the feats recorded, the notable ones include the following: The operatives of the Rapid Response Squad Awkuzu on March 14, 2026, uncovered a case of conspiracy and staged kidnapping with the arrest of two suspects, namely: Chinedu Chineye Nwobi ‘M’, aged 25 years and Okwudili Nweke ‘M’, aged 25 years, respectively.
“The victim, Miss Mmesoma Ifediora, aged 18 years, was rescued unharmed in a forest popularly known as ‘Malaysia Forest’ located at Iruayika, Awkuzu.
“Upon interrogation, the rescued victim confessed that the kidnapping was staged in collaboration with her boyfriend, Obiora Okoye, with the intent to extort the sum of ₦3 million from her parents.
“She further revealed that they had both taken an oath of secrecy and had been moving from one location to another over a period of about two months to sustain the deception.
“However, Obiora, the boyfriend of the victim, also known as ‘Stainless’, fled the scene upon sighting the Police and is currently at large.
“To this end, the victim admitted that her parents had already paid the sum of ₦240,000 into her Opay account as part of the ransom demand.”
He disclosed that items recovered from the suspects include 10 SIM cards from different networks, an MTN 4G WiFi device, two female pants, a native “juju” calabash, a duos mobile phone, a necklace, a white bandage used to restrain the victim, and computer cables.
