Mistura Olasinde, a female resident of Starwood Estate in Galadimawa in the Federal Capital Territory, and her two daughters, Hauwa and Fatima, were kidnapped on Friday, September 8, 2023.
The incident occurred at Kabusa Garden Estate while Mistura’s husband, Surajudeen Olasinde, an employee of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority, and his family were returning home in their Toyota Highlander from Garki to Starwood Estate, which is where they live and is situated between the Galadimawa and Lokokogoma areas of Abuja.
They were kidnapped last Friday at around 7 o’clock while travelling from Garki. The kidnappers attacked them as soon as they arrived at Kabusa Garden Estate, where the road was quite terrible. Before marching them into the forest, they began firing to frighten them away, according to Olasinde.
He added that after receiving a call from concerned citizens, Jerry Cole, the Galadimawa Divisional Police Officer, promptly organised a group of officers to search the bushes alongside vigilante operatives. He continued by saying that the search was futile.
Mr. Olasinde, a native of Offa in Kwara State, claimed that he was not present when the incident occurred.
“I was not in Abuja when everything happened because I was sent to Kwara State. However, I was informed that despite their best efforts, the police and vigilantes had searched the bush until 3 a.m. on Saturday. We also got in touch with representatives from the Department of State Services. They followed the kidnappers’ movements, and they eventually found them in a forest in Kuje,” the man claimed.
Mr. Olasinde, who arrived in Abuja on Saturday, claimed that the people holding his family captive demanded a $100,000,000 ransom from his brother-in-law.
They want $100 million. Later, they reduced it to 50 million, then to 10 million. However, they questioned us about how much money we had with us at the end of the day.
“The kidnappers also informed us that if they killed my wife and my two girls, they could sell their body parts for more money than we claimed to have. We had to resort to begging, pleading with them not to hurt or kill my family, he recalled.
He added that when the kidnappers enquired about the Toyota Highlander that was assaulted after they told them that they didn’t have much money, he told them that it was one of the items that had been sold to earn money for the ransom they intended to pay the kidnappers.
Olasinde went on to say that they were able to raise exactly N2.840 million and that the kidnappers had told them to bring the ransom on Saturday night.
They instructed us to bring the money on Saturday at around 8:00 p.m. They instructed us to go to Kabusa Village and take any available Okada rider (commercial motorcycle) to an unknown location.
“My brother-in-law and I ascended the same bike to deliver the ransom. They emerged and collected the ransom when we arrived in the dense forest where they were hiding. They received N2 million and N840,000 from us.
My wife and daughters arrived at the spot where we were waiting for them after about 40 minutes. So, Olasinde said, “We begged the Okada rider to take my wife and girls home and to come back and fetch us too.
He requested assistance from President Bola Tinubu and the Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, while stating that in addition to the physical harm his wife and daughters have suffered, they are also experiencing psychological trauma and have been transported to a hospital for treatment.
In his remarks, Minister Wine was urged to do everything in his ability to improve the residents’ quality of life. The Chairman of Residents of Starwood Estate, Kayode Adedoyin, listed a number of kidnapping occurrences that had occurred nearby.
When contacted, the Galadimawa DPO, Mr. Cole, advised our correspondent to contact SP Josephine Adeh, the FCT Police Command spokesman, emphasising that he was not authorised to talk with the media.
When contacted, SP Adeh stated that the FCT Police Command had not yet been informed of the development but that she would provide an update as soon as she did.
