Joy, Relief As Abducted NWFL Star Freed After Ransom Ordeal

In a harrowing saga that has gripped the Nigerian sports community, Rebecca John Ihotu, a player in the Nigeria Women’s Football League (NWFL), has been released after spending nearly a week in captivity. The footballer was abducted alongside two other travellers in Edo State late last month.

Ihotu, a former star for Oyo State Pacesetter Queens, was seized on February 27 in the Okada area of Edo State. The vehicle she was travelling in was ambushed by armed men, who then whisked the passengers away and demanded a hefty ransom for their safe return.

Initial demands from the kidnappers stood at N20 million, a figure later reduced to N10 million, plunging the families into a desperate negotiation.

The ordeal came to an end late Thursday night, confirmed Blessing Ojima, a relative of the player. Speaking to journalists on Friday, Ojima revealed that the family’s relief was secured after a payment of N1.5 million was made to the captors.

The process of securing Ihotu’s freedom was fraught with anxiety and required a complex chain of transactions. According to Ojima, the family coordinated with the father of another victim who had also been taken in the same incident. The kidnappers had released this man and instructed him to act as an intermediary.

“On Wednesday, the father of one of the passengers kidnapped with Becky contacted me. The kidnappers gave him my number to arrange the payment. They were adamant about receiving cash, refusing any form of bank transfer,” Ojima explained.

Faced with this demand, the family in Benue State resorted to using over seven Point of Sale (PoS) terminals. They transferred funds in instalments to the man, who then withdrew the cash and delivered the total sum to the kidnappers.

“I was terrified because I didn’t know him,” Ojima admitted. “I started by sending N200,000. When he confirmed receipt, it built some trust, and he kept confirming each transfer after that.”

Shortly after midnight on Thursday, the intermediary called with the long-awaited news: Ihotu had been released into his custody. By early Friday morning, the group—comprising Ihotu, the man’s daughter, and another young male victim—was travelling through Ore, heading towards Onitsha.

Ojima confirmed she has spoken with Ihotu, who is safe and now attempting to contact the driver of the vehicle from the day of the attack to retrieve her belongings.

The incident serves as a stark reminder of the persistent security challenges on Nigerian highways, where the threat of kidnapping for ransom continues to cause widespread fear and suffering.