Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has commended the Commissioner of Police in Abia State, Danladi Isa, and his officers for neutralising six kidnappers and rescuing their captives alive in Osokwa, Abia State.
Furthermore, he has ordered that the house where the kidnapped victims were held be demolished, with the landlord to be queried.
Otti made this statement at Government House, Umuahia, on Saturday evening while briefing journalists on his administration’s latest achievements in security.
The Abia State governor, who reiterated that no part of the state would be surrendered to criminals, warned that any landlord or community leader found providing protection or an operational base for criminal elements would face the consequences.
He expressed sadness over the recent killing of two people in the Ukwa area by the police, while a kidnapped indigene of the state remains in captivity at an unknown location.
Speaking earlier, the Commissioner of Police, Abia State, Danladi Isa, said his command deployed a tactical team and modern technology to neutralise the bandits and rescue their victims from a three-bedroom bungalow.
Isa announced that some of the kidnappers escaped with bullet wounds, while firearms and ammunition were recovered from the gang. He added that efforts are ongoing to apprehend the fleeing criminals.
He thanked Governor Alex Otti for his support of the police and other security agencies in the state and appealed to the Abia public to provide credible information that could lead to the arrest of criminals.
Speaking to journalists, the rescued kidnap victims said they were abducted last week and kept in a residential building without food for five days.
They recounted how the kidnappers had begun using their seized phones to contact their family members for ransom before they were suddenly rescued by the Nigerian Police.