Operatives of the Rivers State Police Command have arrested five suspected members of a kidnapping syndicate allegedly responsible for a series of abductions in parts of Oyigbo Local Government Area and its environs.

The suspects, according to a statement by the Command Spokesperson, ASP Blessing Agabe, the suspects were apprehended during a coordinated intelligence-led operation by operatives attached to the Oyigbo Divisional Police Headquarters, acting on the directives of the Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju.

The Command identified the suspects as Ezekiel Emmanuel, 44, from Benue State; Chukwuma Mbanefor, 51, from Anambra State; Nicholas Diala, 65, from Imo State; Ndubuisi Uwakwe, 49, from Abia State; and Ifeanyi Nwakwo, 51, from Imo State.

According to the police, preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects allegedly confessed to participating in kidnapping operations in Kom-Kom, Railway, Obeama and Afam communities.

The Command said investigations were ongoing to identify and apprehend other members of the syndicate who remain at large.

Commissioner of Police Olugbenga Adewole Adepoju described the arrests as another breakthrough in the Command’s sustained efforts to combat violent crime across the state.

He said the success of the operation was a reflection of the intelligence-driven policing strategy introduced by the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and pledged that the Command would continue to intensify operations against kidnapping, cultism, armed robbery and other criminal activities.

The police commissioner warned that kidnappers and other criminal elements would find no safe haven in Rivers State, assuring residents that the Command would continue to pursue offenders and ensure they face the full weight of the law.

He also urged members of the public to remain vigilant and support security agencies with credible and timely information to aid crime prevention and the arrest of suspects.