A couple whose abduction threw the Ilu Abo community in Akure North into a state of panic has finally been released, bringing a tense and terrifying ordeal to an end.
Jamiu Olawale and his wife were returned to safety after a ₦5 million ransom was paid—a figure hard-won after their captors initially demanded a staggering ₦40 million for their lives.
The nightmare began last week when gunmen invaded their home, shattering the quiet of the neighborhood and whisking the pair away into the unknown.
According to a family source who spoke on the condition of anonymity, “Jamiu and his wife were freed by their captors on Tuesday night, and they have since reunited with their family.
The kidnappers initially demanded N40 million, which was later reduced to ₦12 million before agreeing to the ₦5 million payment.”
The violence erupted at about 9:45 p.m. last Friday at Olaribigba Estate. The fully armed gang had been lying in wait as the couple pulled up to their residence in an ash-coloured Toyota Camry, pouncing on them before they could even reach their front door.
The abduction sparked immediate outrage in the agrarian community. Traumatized residents took to the streets in protest, barricading roads to voice their desperation over the incessant attacks and the crumbling sense of security in their homes.
The brutality of the night wasn’t limited to the couple. As the gunmen carried out the abduction, they opened fire on a neighbor, Patrick Ilumaro, who had simply been sitting in front of his house, leaving him wounded as they fled the scene with their victims.