The Rivers State Police Command has arrested a 26-year-old man, Goodnews Iberi, in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a young woman, Rita Special Eleonu, in an incident that has shocked residents of Emohua and Obio/Akpor Local Councils.
Eleonu, 25, a native of Rumuekini community in Obio/Akpor Council, was reportedly abducted in December 2025 and later murdered after her family paid a ransom of N210,000 to her captors.
The arrest followed a distress report lodged on December 29, 2025, by the victim’s brother, according to the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Chief Superintendent of Police Grace Iringe-Koko.
Speaking on the development, Iringe-Koko said investigations revealed that on December 13, 2025, Iberi and four other accomplices, now at large, lured the victim to the Rumuakunde area of Emohua Local Council. She said the victim was kidnapped and taken to a forest along the East–West Road in Emohua, described by the police as an “evil forest”.
“The suspects collected the sum of N210,000.00 as ransom from the victim’s family before murdering her,” Iringe-Koko said.She explained that acting on credible intelligence, operatives attached to the Anti-Cultism Unit, Emohua Annex, arrested Iberi on January 8, 2026, at about 6:30 a.m. at his hideout.
“During preliminary interrogation, the suspect voluntarily confessed to the crime, highlighting his role and further incriminating four other accomplices,” the police spokesperson said.
According to her, the suspect led police operatives to the forest where the decomposing remains of the victim were recovered. The remains have been deposited at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital morgue for autopsy.
Iringe-Koko said the suspect is currently in police custody, adding that an in-depth investigation has been launched to unravel the full circumstances surrounding the crime, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend the other members of the kidnapping syndicate.
Commending the operatives for their swift action, the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, Olugbenga Adepoju, praised their diligence and professionalism in tracking down the suspect.
He urged members of the public to maintain confidence in police operations and to continue to support the Command with timely and credible intelligence to aid the fight against crime, assuring that information capable of leading to the arrest of the remaining suspects would be treated with utmost confidentiality.The Lagos State Mobile Court has remanded six of the seven suspects arrested for allegedly assaulting personnel of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and the Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI) during a midnight enforcement operation along Murtala Mohammed Airport Road.
The suspects were arraigned before the Lagos State Mobile Court on four counts. The court adjourned the matter to February 19, 2026, for further hearing. One defendant, who pleaded not guilty, was granted bail, while the remaining six were remanded in custody.
The nocturnal operation, led by LASTMA’s General Manager, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, was carried out in collaboration with security operatives, KAI, the Lagos State Task Force and LASTMA field officers.
It followed a series of complaints by the Nigerian Airport Authority over persistent encroachment on its facilities by criminal syndicates and commercial bus operators allegedly operating in defiance of regulations.
According to the authority, the activities had become a public nuisance along the airport corridor, with repeated reports of harassment, intimidation and dispossession of commuters.
LASTMA’s Director of Public Affairs and Enlightenment, Adebayo Taofiq, said five officers of the joint task force were attacked with dangerous weapons, while one of the agency’s tow trucks was set ablaze in an attempt to disrupt the operation.
“Despite the severe provocation and imminent threat to life and public assets, officers of the joint enforcement team exhibited exceptional professionalism, restraint and courage,” he said.
During the exercise, 56 vehicles were impounded for traffic and environmental offences, including 44 commercial buses, five private vehicles and seven trucks.
Bakare-Oki reiterated the state government’s resolve to protect critical infrastructure, ensure the safety of road users and maintain law and order, warning that violence and intimidation would not be tolerated.
He added that enforcement operations along strategic corridors across Lagos would remain continuous and intensified, in collaboration with sister agencies, to curb criminality and safeguard lives and property.
