Operatives of the Akwa Ibom State Police Command at Ikot Akpanabia State Headquarters have detained one Imaobong Francis Sampson, and her boyfriend, Beltus Ebong, for staging her own kidnap.
The state’s Commissioner of Police (CP), Mr. Waheed Ayilara, paraded Sampson, from Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area among other criminal suspects over sundry crimes including murder, cultism, armed robbery, and trafficking in children over the weekend.
Narrating what led to her detention, the suspect said she staged her own abduction to raise cash to solve myriad of problems including feeding, debts and other prevailing challenges during this difficult time.
Sampson said, “Because of this difficult period, I had to stage fake kidnapping of myself, demanding N4 million from my Aunty who lives abroad,” she confessed in an interview with Journalists.
The CP, while explaining how how team busted the fraud said “the Anti-Kidnapping Squad (AKS) received a report on 11th March, 2024 from one Enobong Sampson, a female of Nung Oku in Ibesikpo Asutan LGA, that her sister was kidnapped.
“Next day, 12th March, 2024, the purported kidnapped victim, Imaobong Sampson and her boyfriend were arrested in her hideout at Mbierebe Obio in Ibesikpo Asutan.
“She confessed to have conspired with her boyfriend, one Beltus Ebong, alongside one Dominic Friday Charlie, her sister, Enobong Sampson ‘and Inyene Ime Akpan, now at large, to proclaim her kidnap in order to raise money from her Aunty who is based abroad.”
Besides, the CP said four other kidnapped victims were rescued during the raid, adding that no fewer than 52 other suspects were arrested within the last one month of his assumption of duties in the state.
He listed other criminal elements arrested during the period: “Within the period, on March 13, based on intelligence, operatives of the Command arrested one Okon Edet, of Uruting Village in Okobo LGA, for killing his father, Chief Okon Edet, aged 75, of the same address by beating him mercilessly with machete, leading to his death.
“Edet alleged that the late father had sold all the parcel of lands he had, including the one that he gave to him to build his house as the reason for his action,” the CP said.
He added that “On March 8, the operatives of Anti Robbery Squad of the Command, arrested one Akanimo Akpan of Efa Ayam Village in Etinan LGA, who is involved in adulterated fruits drink and other products. Also on March 8, at about 1600hrs, one Akan Edet was arrested for using Point Of Sale (POS) to defraud innocent citizens and was to be set ablaze but was rescued by operatives of COMPOL Monitoring Unit,” the Akwa Ibom’s police chief said.
He disclosed that most of those the suspect defrauded have identified him and the sum of N350, 000 cash was recovered from him at the time of arrest.
The CP assured that all the suspects will be charged to Court as soon as investigations on their cases are concluded.
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