Picture: Boy, 3, rescued after two years in KIDNAPPERS’ den

Posted by admin Headlines Friday, January 6th, 2012

January 7, 2012 by ‘Nonye Ben-Nwankwo

Kidnapped from his hometown in Imo state, a little boy mysteriously reappears in neighbouring Abia State, writes ‘Nonye Ben-Nwankwo

On Sept 14, 2009, little Chukwubueze Igwe was kidnapped from his home town, Eziama in Ezinihitte, Imo State when he was 19 months old. But a few days before last Christmas, he was found in Umuahia, the capital of Abia State.

For now, nobody knows exactly where the youngster, whose sudden disappearance had caused his parents much pain and anxiety, was kept and how he had fared these past years.

At the time he was kidnapped, Chukwubueze’s father, Augustine Igwe, had thought somebody was playing a prank on the family. The boy’s mother, Ifeoma, had felt she was only having an unusual dream.

But as the days rolled into months without their son, it gradually dawned on the couple that their little boy had disappeared. For two years, they waited and hoped for an opportunity to reclaim their little boy.

Little did the Igwes know that their prayers would be answered and fortune would smile on them. A few weeks ago, when news came to the boy’s father that his long lost son had been found, his joy knew no bounds.

“Somebody from this village came back from Umuahia and said that a missing child was shown on television. On impulse, I decided to go and find out if he was my child,” Augustine Augustine says.

Eventually, Augustine went to Umuahia and discovered that the missing child was indeed, his son, Chukwubueze.

He says, “The woman who found Chukwubueze said he was wandering in the market and people were asking who his mother was. Since nobody came forward to claim him, the woman took him home with her. The woman said her neighbours advised her to report the case to the police station and she did just that.

“The police took the child to the Broadcasting Corporation of Abia State and announced that he was missing before taking him to a motherless babies’ home.”

Somewhat suspecting that the missing child might be his lost son, Augustine had proceeded to an orphanage in Aba, where the child was kept. He was armed, as advised, with Chukwubueze’s birth certificate and some photographs.

He continues, “We showed them my son’s photographs, which were taken before he was kidnapped. As soon as I saw him, I knew he was my son. I could tell from certain features of his body. I looked out for those features and found them. One of his fingers is very thick and I looked out for that. Also, he sleeps in a certain manner. Nothing has changed at all,”

With little Chukwubueze firmly balanced on his laps and holding tightly to him, Augustine tells SATURDAY PUNCH that the last two years were the worst period of his life.

Recalling how he discovered that his son had been kidnapped, Augustine says he came back from a social function on that fateful day and did not meet his other children at home.

He says, “I asked my mother where my children had gone to and she said they went to look for their brother. I didn’t understand what she was saying. I went outside and saw them with other villagers. I brought them back to the house and went back to find out what was happening because I really didn’t understand what they were saying about my son being kidnapped.

“A neighbour’s housemaid said my son had accompanied her to get some food for the goats from a bush near our house. Suddenly, two men on a motorcycle appeared and pointed a gun at her. She said the men threatened to kill her if she didn’t hand the boy to them. Afterwards, they snatched the boy from her and zoomed off on the motorcycle.”

The girl’s account had sounded like a line from a comedy to Augustine. He couldn’t imagine nor believe that his son was the subject of the story being bandied around the village.

He says, “Everybody came out to look for him. We went to the streams and the forest, searched the nooks and crannies of the village, but we couldn’t find him. We came home late in the night.

“I locked my door, but decided we were not complete yet. How could I lock my door when my 19-month-old child was not in the house? I had to take off again alone in search of him. Still, I didn’t find him.

“I reported the incident at the Itu Police Station in Ezinihitte, but nothing came out of it. The police promised to do their best. They said we should be looking for Chukwubueze, while they searched for him, too. That was the last we heard from them.

“Nobody bothered to give us any feedback or even give us the impression that they were searching for our son.

“I told God that since I had never kidnapped or even planned to kidnap anybody’s child, then nobody had any right to do so to my own. I had a strong conviction that I would see my child again.”

Two years later, Augustine’s faith that he would find his son alive and well has paid off.

Although Chukwubueze was not as vibrant as the other children in his father’s compound, Igwe says the boy is adapting well to the environment. But the boy’s back is deeply scarred. Also, he is yet to regain his speech.

Worried about these snags, Augustine says, “When we brought him from Umuahia, he looked very sickly. We took him to a doctor who said he was alright, yet treated him for malaria.

“We don’t know what happened to his back. We don’t know if he was flogged or if he was tied with ropes that could have given him these marks on his body.

“These marks were not on him before he was kidnapped. He cannot talk yet. Nobody knows what happened to him or whether they wanted to use him for rituals.

“Nobody can tell us what happened to him between the two years he was kidnapped and when he was found in the market in Umuahia. Only God and the kidnappers knew what happened to him.”

In spite of all this, Augustine says his family has been celebrating Chukwubueze’s return ever since.

“Chukwubueze is cooperating with his siblings. We are glad. I’m going to train him like I had planned to do. His mother is very happy about this,” he says.

Chukwubueze’s mother, Ifeoma, tearfully recounts the pains which her family has endured as a result of the boy’s disappearance.

Noting that the incident had almost torn her family apart, she says, “I went to the market and I left my little boy with my mother-in-law. My children are used to staying at home with her. I always left them with her every time to go to the market.

“The issue caused a lot of problems between me and my husband. I told him that I left Chukwubueze with his mother and no other person. It also brought some issues between me and my mother-in-law. But I thank God we eventually resolved everything even before my son was found.

“We went to some churches and we were told that our son would be found and that he was not dead. This Christmas was meant for me. Finding my baby was the best gift I received last year. He is not vibrant yet. But we believe he will be. Everybody prayed for us to see the child and thank God that we saw him.”

The head of Eziama community, Mr. Eleazer Akwukwuegbu, says everybody in the village went in search of the boy when he was kidnapped.

He says, “Such a thing had never happened in this village before. I was scared and dumbfounded. I had to make Augustine to swear that he didn’t use his son for rituals and pretend that he was kidnapped.

“Also, I had to swear that I didn’t kidnap the boy and I made sure everybody in the entire community swore to an oath that they didn’t take part in the child’s kidnapping. We thank God that he has been found and we pray that such a thing doesn’t happen in our community again.”

When contacted, the Imo State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Samuel Oodee, said he was not aware of the incident.

He says, “I need to confirm if the incident was actually reported, since you said it happened in 2009. I wasn’t the PPRO of the state at the time. If the case was reported and the police couldn’t do anything, then it is not really the fault of the police. We’re not magicians.

“We are also human and we work with information provided to us. We were able to rescue some kidnapped kids last December and we did that based on the useful information people gave us. We are trying our very best in this command.”

-Punchwp_posts