We demanded N100m from Okonjo-Iweala but we got N13m, says suspect

Posted by admin Headlines Tuesday, April 16th, 2013

How palace messenger plotted the kidnap of Finance Minister’s mother

MORE drama is unfolding everyday in the investigation into the atrocious abduction on December 8, 2012 of octogenarian and 82-year-old mother of the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, from the palace of her husband, the traditional ruler of Ogwashi-uku, Aniocha South Local Council Area of Delta State.

A new twist to the event showed how a messenger successfully organized the abduction of the woman without the knowledge of the villagers.

Though, at the time of her release from her abductors den, both the police and the Delta State Government denied paying any ransom to the kidnappers, the suspects alleged that they actually collected a whooping N13 million from the family of the victim.

The suspects admitted sharing their loot among themselves according to the degree of individual involvement in the kidnapping process.

Narrating how the abduction was planned and prosecuted, the palace messenger, one Victor Chiejine Onochie, told newsmen that it was hunger and frustration that led him into crime.

“I grew up inside the palace. I was five years old when I became a worker in the palace. All through my stay I was never paid any money; I was just like a servant. It is hunger that led me to organize the kidnapping of the Queen.”

“Having thought of how best to make money, I realized that I could organize the kidnapping of the mama. One of the things I discovered while I was in the palace was the lack of security presence at the palace. And it was at the peak of kidnapping in Delta State, so I took advantage of it and invited the gang. To expand my idea, I invited one of my friends called Chukwuma Onochie to discuss my plans.”

“It was Chukwuma who actually invited other members of the gang. Three days after my meeting with Okoh, I met with the gang’s second in command whom I later knew as Jideofor Ogbue alias ‘Marvellous’, 21years old, who said we should leave the actual prosecution of the plan to him,” he said.

He added: “A day to the day she was kidnapped, the gang members who were 12 in number stayed in the village without anybody suspecting anything.

Five of the gang members went inside the palace. Marvellous who had a gun tucked under his shirt, approached the victim.”

“Marvellous claimed that we were directed by the Presidency to arrest the Finance Minster whom he alleged had been implicated in a fraud case and that we were asked to take her to Abuja. The Queen had refused to follow us screaming that she was not the Finance Minister. We bundled her into the back of one of the vehicles that was waiting outside. With her eyes blind-folded, we drove off, firing sporadic shots into the air to scare away people.”

“She was taken to a bush in Kwale area of Delta State, and we fed her with bread and at times rice. We started giving her rice when we became sure that they were going to pay the ransom demanded. We initially demanded for N100m but we collected only N13 million before the Queen was released,” he revealed.

Although the palace messenger claimed he did not benefit from the ransom money, Marvelous alleged that the messenger got N700, 000 while Chukwuma Okoh got N500, 000

According to Onochie: “I threatened the gang that I will expose them if they refuse to let me have my own fair share of the ransom money. I went to the police station when I heard that I was declared ‘wanted’. After the kidnap of Prof. Kanene Okonjo, the gang came to me to provide them with information about another person, but I refused because I did not benefit from the first incident.”

“However, after so much persuasion from them, I gave them information on how to kidnap another prominent person who is also from Ogwashi-Uku. I was shocked when I learnt later that the man had been killed. That was when I decided to give myself up to the police.”

The gang’s second-in-command told newsmen that they normally collect ransom money from their victim’s family at the Benin By-pass.

His words: “On the day the money was paid, three of us waited at the Benin by-pass having been in close contact with the family members. The money was in N1000 and N500 denominations and was carefully concealed in a black polythene bag. We shared the money among us depending on the role each and every member of the gang played,” he said.

One of the kingpins, Marvelous told reporters that a member of the gang identified as Peter shot the 72-year-old Regina Dainty dead.

“Peter was angry that his brother was killed in an operation carried out by the police. We were not there when he shot him dead. All we saw later was that the man had been killed. We hid the news of the death away from the family. They later got to know after N2million had been paid,” the suspect said.

Parading the suspects before newsmen at the Command Headquarters, Ikeja, the Lagos State Police boss, Mr. Umar Manko, said sequel to the arrest of Onochie and Okoh in March this year by men of the State Investigation Bureau (SIB) and their subsequent confession that they gave the information that led to the kidnap of the mother of the finance minister in Delta State, he directed the officer in charge of the state Anti Robbery Squad (SARS), SP Abba Kyari to go after the gang .

“SARS operatives extended their dragnet to Delta, Edo and River States respectively. They eventually arrested Marvelous at his hideout in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. His arrest led to the rounding up of five others,” Manko explained.

Manko gave the names of other gang members as Michael Ojeabulu, Endurance Oke, Ibrahim Abubakar, Buhari Hamadora and Hassan Oseni.

He stated that five AK 47 rifles, 31 rounds of live ammunition and one Honda Civic coupe with No. FST 502 BC were recovered from the culprits.

Gunmen on Sunday December 8, 2012 abducted Prof. Kamene Okonjo, 82, mother of the Minister of Finance, Prof Okonjo-Iweala in Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State.

The octogenarian, wife of His Majesty, Professor Chukwuka Aninshi Okonjo Agbogidi, the reigning Obi of Ogwashi-Uku kingdom was kidnapped that day at about 1:30 pm at the Obi’s palace at Ogbe-Ofu quarters in Ogwashi-Uku by eight gunmen who stormed the palace in two Audi cars.

-Guardianwp_posts