Police Uncover How ‘One Chance’ Gang Killed 2 Nurses After N3.5m Ransom

The Nigeria Police Force has uncovered disturbing details of how a suspected “one chance” syndicate allegedly abducted, tortured and killed two nurses in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), despite collecting a ransom of N3.5 million from the family of one of the victims.

The suspects were paraded by police authorities during a crime scene reconstruction exercise in Abuja, where investigators provided a breakdown of the gang’s alleged operations and their involvement in the deaths of Nurse Chinemerem Chukwumezie and Nurse Chinenye Bridget Abia, who were killed about a month apart.

According to police findings, Chinenye was abducted while commuting within Abuja and taken to an unknown location where she was held captive by the syndicate. Her family was subsequently forced to pay N3.5 million in ransom in an attempt to secure her release.

However, despite the payment, police said the victim was allegedly killed by her captors, and her body was later dumped near Katanpi Bridge along the Kubwa Expressway.

During the reconstruction exercise, suspects reportedly demonstrated how they lured, overpowered and restrained victims inside commercial vehicles before robbing and abducting them.

One of the suspects described the gang’s method of operation, explaining how victims were immediately subdued once they entered the vehicle.

“So once they enter, that person is already at the back while I’m at the front. Then we’ll hold the lady… I’ll bring out the knife and tell the person to either cooperate and give us the money we need. Then we’ll use cord to tie the person’s hand and use a scarf to tie the person’s eyes,” the suspect said.

Police said the group specifically targeted female passengers, whom they believed were less likely to resist their attacks during operations.

A survivor who encountered the gang separately also gave a harrowing account of her experience, revealing that she lost over N11.5 million and other valuables to the suspects.

She described long-lasting psychological trauma following the incident, saying she still struggles with fear whenever entering vehicles.

“The PTSD of entering a car and the driver will just lock the door without even telling you… The first few weeks, I can’t see anything close to me. So it was very, very horrifying, actually,” she said.

The Commander of the Special Tactical Squad described the operation leading to the arrest of the suspects as one of the most difficult investigations handled by his unit.

“This is one of the toughest tasks we had. We had to spend one year and five months to track them,” he said.

He added that sustained intelligence gathering and surveillance eventually led to the arrest of members of the syndicate and the dismantling of parts of their criminal network.

Police authorities said investigations are ongoing to identify and apprehend other fleeing members of the gang, as well as recover weapons, vehicles and other items allegedly used in their operations.

The development has heightened concerns over the activities of “one chance” robbery syndicates in Abuja, which continue to target unsuspecting commuters, particularly women, through violent robbery, abduction and extortion.