₦airaland Forum

We saw many dead bodies: Gory tale of kidnap victim from Edo forest where villains are rewarded for killing policemen

…Reveals signs, signals in kidnappers’ den, near Nigerian road where they strike twice daily
…They gave us tramadol, warned we would die like others if we didn’t take it
…They didn’t rape women but beat them, sometimes to death
…Ability to speak Hausa language helped me
Herdsmen: ‘We’ll kill all policemen, take over Edo State’

Sporadic gunshots from some armed men rented the air on December 20,2020 , at Ehor, on the Benin /Auchi expressway, Edo State.

Time was 7.45pm.

The deafening sounds of gunshots rattled travelers who were in their respective vehicles. This was followed by screeching of tyres as motorists plying the route attempted to hurriedly make u-turns to avoid being victims .

Unfortunately, one of the vehicles, a Siena bus was intercepted and all its passengers – three men and three women – dispossessed of cash and valuables.

But that was not all.

The armed men, ordered the fear stricken passengers to alight from the vehicle, be on a straight line and marched them into the bush. At that point, it dawned on all that they were not just robbers, but also kidnappers.

One kidnap too many

That was not the first time such an incident would be experienced along that route. In fact, it has become a daily occurrence. Information at Crime Guard’s disposal has it that these kidnappers operate at least twice a day. There were times, victims were hit with stray bullets during the indiscriminate shooting to force motorists to stop, and their bodies abandoned.

At other times, abducted victims were either shot dead or they died out of shock or hunger , in the kidnappers den.

These dare devils have no fear for security agents, as they have on some occasions, shot police escorts dead and their boss’ whisked into the forest and killed or released after ransom was paid.

Journey into the forest

A pregnant woman was among the passengers in the Sienna bus that was attacked on December 20, 2020.

Narrating their journey to the kidnapper’s den, one of the abducted passengers, ThankGod Okuk, revealed that their abductors were herdsmen, some of whom sounded educated.

He said: “ I traveled to Abuja for a wedding on Thursday, December 17, 2020. By Sunday morning, being December 20th, I boarded Big Joe transport to Benin city. On reaching Ekpoma, the driver told us he won’t be going to Benin because it was already past 7pm. Some of us took our belongings from the vehicle and boarded a Sienna bus to Benin.

After Ehor, we were attacked by a gang of Fulani herdsmen who shot sporadically into the air .

“As they marched us into the bush, the leader of the gang asked who was the bus driver , immediately the driver identified himself, he was beaten thoroughly before he was set free, while the rest of us were ordered to move on while they continued shooting.

“A pregnant woman among us fell down, as she could not move anymore. Some of the kidnappers tried to revive her and in the process, one of us escaped into the bush. Our abductors were so angry that they abandoned the pregnant woman and ordered us to move on.

“ We trekked for three hours, crossed a river and ascended a hill which took us about twenty minutes to climb. We descended into a dish and then thick forest. We spent three days in the forest without food.

Communication sign

“I observed that the kidnappers had a sign of communication and direction inside the forest . Some of the trees had rags tied to them , with a sign. When we approached any of the trees, they would point their torchlight to see the direction the rag faced and followed it accordingly.

Also, when they heard any noise inside the forest , they would ask us to stop while they made a sound like that of a herdsman to his cow. If there was the same response , it meant it was their colleagues but if no response, they would start shooting into the bush before commanding us to move on.

Dead bodies in the bush

“There were lots of dead bodies inside the forest, with their hands tied to their back. We trekked for another two hours before we got to their camp located in the heart of the forest .

On arrival, there was jubilation. There were dead bodies everywhere. One of the kidnappers came and started tying our hands to our back but never spoke any word to us until the next day, when the leader of the gang who was referred to as Alhaji, came to us.

He made some calls to their boss before commanding his boys to beat us.

We were beaten like animals without mercy. Thereafter, we were instructed to call our families for negotiation. Anyone whose family did not give a positive answer for payment of ransom would be given another round of beating , with some gunshots fired into the air to put fear in our minds .

Hausa dialect saved me

“When it was my turn, the negotiator picked me up and began to flog me. I begged him in Hausa dialect to be gentle with me. I was shocked when he stopped and their boss ordered him to separate me from others. He asked if I was from the North, since I was bearded. I said no, but that I was born in the North . They removed the veil from my eyes and asked me to sit on the ground while others laid on their stomachs .

I immediately called my elder brother. I was scared he would not respond well, as that would amount to my being beaten. But he did and requested the kidnapper to allow him speak with me first, to ensure I was alive. Thereafter, he begged the negotiator to consider him, saying that things were hard”.

Tramadol mixed in water was food

Okuk said they were not given food to eat but water mixed with hard drugs.

He said: “ Once a day, the kidnappers would fetch water from the river and add a tablet of tramadol inside the cup, allowing it to dissolve before giving us to drink. I had no choice than to drink it because I wanted to stay alive. They told us it would give us strength and help us endure pains and hunger and that if we didn’t take it, we would die of hunger like others .

“We excreted and urinated on our bodies throughout the days we spent in the forest. They brought in passengers twice a day, both women and children. Sometimes when they encountered any police escort, they would kill him and make away with his gun and cap. Whenever this happened, the person that fired the shot that killed the policeman would be promoted. .

Division of labour

There were 10 kidnappers with us. Among them was an armourer who serviced their guns .They had different types of guns including SMG and bags of bullets. The guns used in the morning weren’t used again until two days after.

They didn’t eat real food. They would pour garri ( cassava flour ) into oil with onions and Maggi, and eat. They didn’t rape their female victims, they only beat them, sometimes, to death .

Fortification charms

“Gun bullets don’t penetrate them. Before going out for any operation, they would try the bullets on themselves by shooting randomly after which the leader would bring out a white rag, spread it on the floor and others would surround the rag , chant some incantations before going for operation.

Free at last

“They finally agreed to accept N250,000 from each of us. But the agreement was that the two other families should hand theirs to my elder brother to bring to the designated place in the forest. But the parents of the fourth person abandoned him. At a point, they couldn’t be reached on the phone. He was nearly beaten to death. I had to beg them to also release him alongside us since his family had rejected him. Most of them agreed to release him to us”.

Message to security agents

“On the night four of us were to be released, the leader of the gang said I should tell the Police they were out for them, that their plan was to kill all policemen that would cross their path and that their intention was to take over Edo state. I told him I would personally deliver the message to the Commissioner of Police , Edo State”.

They went to collect the ransom earlier before we were released and told my brother to wait for us. They came with loaves of bread and bottles of water which were among what my brother brought. They gave us a loaf of bread and a bottle of water each.

But we were too tired to eat because our stomach was locked. We only took water .

Two of the kidnappers marched us through the forest . We trekked for about two hours inside the forest before arriving at Obagie/Ehor expressway . They left us but told us to walk into the community and narrate our ordeal to anyone we met . They said we would meet my brother there.

On reaching the community, we met some youths outside and narrated our ordeal to them. They took us to their leader who provided a room for the two girls to sleep, while the fourth man and I slept outside the hut. I was taken to a Police check point where my brother, who was held on his way back from the designated point of ransom payment, was”.

Ailing pregnant woman

Few days after their release, the pregnant woman who was abandoned in the bush by the kidnappers, reportedly contacted Okuk. She explained that she got his number from one of the ladies that was released.

Crime Guard gathered that she was rescued by members of a vigilante group that night and taken to the Ehor Police Division from where she was taken care of before continuing her journey to Benin City, the Edo State capital.

Though the Edo State Police Command has killed some kidnap suspects during cross fire, with many arrested kidnapping in the state, especially along the Benin- Auchi expressway, has remained unabated.

gadegunle:
Thank you. Okay sir
More updates soon.....

I was abducted in church, sold to Fulani kidnappers – NIS spokesperson

THE Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Immigration Service, Edo State Command, Bridget Esene, has said that she was meant to be killed but her abductors sold her to suspected Fulani herdsmen.

Esene, who was released by her abductors on Tuesday, said she suffered at the hands of the kidnappers.

Speaking on Wednesday through the telephone, she said, “The armed men numbering five trailed me to my church at Ikhueniro near Benin City where I was kidnapped.

“I was forced into their car and driven out of the church premises by my abductors who later sold me to another set of kidnappers, who are suspected herdsmen. I saw hell and l don’t wish my enemy such.”

She said upon sighting the kidnappers, she had attempted to escape but was intercepted at gunpoint by the hoodlums.

Esene stated that the armed men later took her into the forest and some other hardened kidnappers were on the ground to receive her.

She added, “I was later sold to another set of gunmen who then took me deep into the forest.”

Mrs Esene said she was later rescued by the police and the vigilante.

Bodexman:
They need to grow some balls.

Meanwhile, their leaders want to be in the good books of the Fulanis because of 2023, so they have to trade their people for the imaginary presidential shot.

Na only Tinubu dem sabi shout for here.

merxi55:
for my mum I meant. Don't know yet. At least business that isn't capital intensive.
Hence my questions.

Thank you.

okoroemeka:
this is quite interesting,if one hectare of land (15 plots)will produce 50 bags of refined rice then definitely rice farmers are really trying,if you factor in the financial cost to prepare such big land, work and stress to produce rice , harvest and refine rice on one hectare it's better imagined,the last time I checked one 50kg bag is #11-12,000k local rice,so we have #600,000 from rice on one swampy hectare in 90-100 days,not too encouraging if you look at production figures of veggies you will agree with me that a rice farmer suppose to have a veggie patch around because that is were the money is, personally I have seen #2,000,000 million+ realized from 1 acre(6 plots)of cucumbers in 70+ days,f it's hot peppers that is planted on that 1 hectare just 2 harvests will give you same money like rice,and you will harvest every 4-5 days for at least 5 months.when we are young and growing up we are meant to believe that money don't grow on trees but veggies are definitely proving that statement wrong.

iita:
You can come for on the spot assessment.
Invest now.

okine4real:
I have been hearing lots of people, talking about different types of Agricultural produce they can plant or would want to plant, But what i have not seen on these forum is for someone to really come out and tell us, all the stress, difficulties, ups and down he/she went through before setting up there plantation.

I want to start by saying i have managed to secure mine self 13 plots of land. Each plot is a 100 by 100 feet. i want to start up an oil palm plantation. I have been able to buy 1755 oil palm Nursery from NIFOR. My story goes like these.......

Each oil palm nursery cost 150 Naira
Loading of each oil palm Nursery inside the vehicle is 20 Naira each
I paid 50,000 to convey the goods from IMO state to Ibusa Delta state.


On getting to the farm, the vehicle could not get to ibusa on time, the vehicle got to ibusa around 9.30pm. So the vehicle had to park in the house for the night. The next morning the journey to the farm began around 6.30Am, on getting to the entrance of the farm, the vehicle could not go in, because of poor road network. The vehicle managed to drive in but as the vehicle drove in, some sticks punctured one tire. So we had to off load the hold oil palm nursery on the ground. So we hard to go hire a pick up van. The van owner charged us 6,000 to convey the nursery to a location closer to mine own farm because there are other people farm in front of mine farm. now after that, i had to call the Hausa boys to use there wheelbarrow to convey the nursery to the farm, they charged 24,000. na wa ohhhh

Now the next stage is for me to plant. My mum's brother did one of these Agricultural causes is school, so he is a professional when planting oil palms.

We used a spacing is 8.7feet. you heard me clear, 8.7 feet. while they where doing the measurement, you know when planting oil palm, you have to do pegging, some hard roots was sitting on the sport where he was suppose to plant the oil palm, there was so much roots on the ground, we called the Hausa people again, they charged me 30,000 to uproot all the hard roots. so work continued. As am specking now, they have finished planting the 1755 oil palms. They would be buying more 200 palms because its like the land is more bigger than with i was told.

While am putting these here is for the new people that wants to go into farming. People, if you must go into farming, you must have money..... The more you go into it, the more unforeseen issues comes, and if you don't have cash to solve the issue immediately, your work would be suspended.

Also it does not end in just planting, there are still lots of things to be done before the said three years when you would starting harvesting.


So far so good, i have don't lots of mistakes in setting up mine oil palm plantation. If i have read some post that advices one on NL about setting up Oil palm plantation, i would not have made these silly mistakes.

if you are setting up an oil palm plantation.

Never you buy expensive lands.
Buy from NIFOR in your State not from outside your state
Let there me good motor able rood, so the vehicle conveying the palms can go into your land direct.
Make sure there is know roots in the ground that would disturb when planting


I would update later when more things comes into mine head

adenigga:
!!!!!......

adenigga:
!!!!!!......

One of the farmers attacked at Igangan in the Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State on Friday, Seun Isaiah, has said Fulani herdsmen living in the community attacked him and three others in the presence of some policemen.

Isaiah, who was reported to be one of the two persons who died following the attack allegedly carried out by herdsmen, survived the onslaught despite the injury inflicted on his head.

He spoke on Saturday in a video made available to our correspondent in Ibadan.

According to the Convener, Igangan Development Advocates, Oladiran Oladokun, who made the video available to our correspondent, the victim recounted his ordeal at the hospital when the Executive Assistant to Governor Seyi Makinde on Security, Sunday Odukoya, visited him (Isaiah) at the hospital where he was being treated.

The victim, whose head was heavily bandaged, said he and three others were returning home on the same motorcycle when the Fulani men inflicted machete cuts on them.

He said he did not know the whereabouts of the others.

Isaiah said, “The four of us were on the same motorcycle; they just came out and waylaid us. We were not attacked inside the bush; we were attacked at Oju Alagolo. We would have turned back, but we saw some policemen there and that was why we felt there would not be any problem.”

Asked how he knew their assailants were Fulani, he said they were the town’s herdsmen.

“One of those Fulani who attacked us with a cutlass came out of his house. I know his house. They did not say we did anything. They ran after us and started inflicting cuts on us as we sped away. Two police vehicles were where we were attacked by the Fulani men, but they pretended as if they did not see what happened. The motorcycle is still where we were attacked,” he added.

Residents said a popular Yoruba activist, Sunday Igboho, had earlier visited the town and went to the Fulani settlement, where he gave them a seven-day notice to quit because of their alleged atrocities.

Crisis ensued during the visit and two huts were allegedly set ablaze.

However, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Olugbenga Fadeyi, said, “The popular Sunday Igboho from Igboho town stormed the Fulani camp at Igangan in four Hilux pickup vans and attacked the people and injured four persons.”

RainOnMe:
In large sum of money like N10m and above, what would you do?