Sam Philip
Ondo State Security Network codenamed Amotekun Corps has no fewer than 28 persons who specialised in defrauding persons seeking to travel abroad for greener pastures.
Members of the syndicate cut across Ghana and Nigeria and lured most of their victims from Ghana.
They assured them of securing visa to travel to the United States of America(USA), United Kingdom(UK), Canada and Australia.
The victims in their statements disclosed that the syndicate collected over $144,000 (N216 million) from them.
One of the victims, who escaped from the house where he and other victims were held captive, Jeremiah Amoah explained that he was contacted by the head of the syndicate, who is a Ghanaian, assuring him that he would help him secure visa to Australia in Nigeria.
He was asked to come to Nigeria and when he arrived in Lagos, he was told to take a public transport to Akure, Ondo State capital.
Arriving in Akure, he was asked to take a commercial motorcycle(okada) to Oda town where they connected him.
Immediately they brought into the residence, they collected 2000 USD from him, leaving him with no money on him.
They asked him to invite another person as his replacement so that they could release him.
Jeremiah however jumped over the wall of the house and later contacted his brother in Ghana, who subsequently contacted his friend in Nigeria to help rescue his two other brothers still in captivity.
The Nigerian friend contacted Amotekun Corps who swung into action and rounded up everyone in the building.
The Corps Commander, Akogun Adetunji Adeleye, while parading the suspects said they were arrested in the last two weeks joint aids of the forests by all security agencies in the state.
He said: “You are aware that the government of Ondo State, under the able leadership of Dr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, set up a committee and a team to checkmate the rising insecurity in Ondo State in the last couple of days.
“This gave rise to what we codenamed Operation Daadaa. Officers and men of all security agencies in Ondo State, including the Amotekun Corps, the Police, the Army, the Civil Defense, bombarded the Alagada, Ago Ademekun, Ago Oyinbo Forest. The operation extended to Ose and Owo local governments and the entire Akure North and South local governments of Ondo State.
“Today, we are parading 61 suspects. These suspects were arrested for various crimes across the state. And that is why on kidnapping issue, we brought both the victims and the arrested culprits who identified some of the victims, and the victims identified them too.
“We equally have a syndicate that we were able to break their ranks.
It’s a 28-man syndicate that specializes in kidnapping, human trafficking, and rustling.
“They invite unsuspecting members of the public that they want to help them procure U.S. visa. We have 28 Ghanaians who were invited to Akure, and once they come in, they collect money from them, some of them $2,000, some of them $1,500, and kidnap them and house them in Oda.
“The only condition under which they will leave the place is to bring another set to be kidnapped. The Eagle Eye of the Intelligence Section of Amotekun Corps was able to pick them and right here today, we have 28 of them. We equally have those of them that were rescued by the Corps and their families.
“In Owo Local Government Area, we were able to rescue a family of five from kidnappers without payment of ransom. The same thing goes to a family of four that were rescued. The families are here too, and also without payment of one kobo ransom.
“The only money they collected from the Idanre group were the money found on them, N210,000 while they were negotiating with us for N10 million, but we bombarded the forests where they were due to intelligence network, and we were able to rescue them without hurting them.
“We equally arrested some other people for cattle rustling, and violation of the anti-open grazing law.
“In the specifics, there is a Sylvester that has been on our watch list as a suspected kidnapper that was arrested at Old garage Akure.
“We also have one Olaoluwa Akinmuyi and Anthony who were arrested for similar criminal offenses. There is Blessing Imafidon who was arrested in Araromi, Akure for attempted killing. And we have some cultists arrested with firearms, Abdullahi Suberu, Abiodun Edward in Owo and Ikare.
“Also, under these two weeks under review with the Amotekun Rangers and Operation Daadaa, in collaboration with other security agencies, we arrested a group in the far Arimogija boundary of the Ondo/Edo that were dismantling critical Federal Government assets in terms of aluminum conductors and wires. This brings to a total of 61 suspected criminals.”