A 67-year-old woman, Adefunke Ale, who recently escaped from a gang of kidnappers at Amurin, along Akure/Owo Road, in Owo Local Government Area of Ondo State, has said she has refused to travel after her ugly experience.
Narrating harrowing tales of how she was kidnapped on her way from Owo on a private visit, the sexagenarian stated that she has since been in shock and that she may not travel long distance again if concrete efforts were not put in place by the various governments and security agencies to tackle the menace of kidnapping in the country.
Mrs Ale, who hails from Owo, recalled how she was ambushed by eight suspected kidnappers on October 15, 2023, on her way to Akure with her brother, Yemi Ogunmolasuyi who was driving the car they were travelling with.
According to her, the kidnappers, who did not cover their faces, were armed with sophisticated guns and other dangerous weapons.
She, however, said that the kidnappers said to her that she was their sole target so that they could collect a huge ransom from her son, Akeem Olugosi, who lives in the United States of America.
Explaining the agonies she suffered after her abduction, Ale stated, “On October 15, 2023, at about 3pm, my brother and I were in the car from Owo to Akure. We were waylaid by four kidnappers at Amurin on the road and another set of four kidnappers were at the back of the car.
“They shot at our car, and we had to park, and all the car doors were open. Four of them guided me to the bush, and another set of four dragged my elder brother to the bush.
“Sighting a mud portion in the bush, I fell in it because I was extremely tired. They had to drag me, and in the process, I had some wounds on my legs.
“While being dragged, one of them asked them to carry me, and they had already removed my footwear and had taken my bag, which contained many valuables.
“Then, the other four kidnappers took my brother away and those in charge of me attempted to carry me from the mud but could not and had to let me down, they made another attempt but also failed and one of them was about to shoot me but the other three asked him not to do so.
“They asked me if I used juju (charms) and I replied that I knew nothing about it. In the process of further attempting to carry me again, gunshots rented the air, and they had to abandon me there and ran away, but the other set had taken my brother away.
“The kidnappers told my brother that they were trailing us from Owo to purposely kidnap me so that my son abroad, Akeem Olugosi, could pay them. They said they would still kidnap me again.”
Mrs. Ale, who said that motorists plying the road could not wait to help her, said that some policemen rescued her and took her to the hospital for medical care.
She said, “I could not stand up and had to crawl until I reached the roadside. There was a heavy traffic hold-up on the road because our vehicle had double-crossed the road. All attempts to ask for help from motorists yielded nothing, and I was there for almost 30 minutes before some boys came out from the bush opposite the area.
“And I asked them to carry me, but in the process, policemen arrived, and I told them that the kidnappers had taken my brother away, and the police said that they would carry me to their station to report. When we got to Emure-Ile Police Station, the DPO there asked them to take me to the Federal Medical Centre in Owo (FMC) for medical treatment.
“On getting to FMC, I was told to get a card, but I told them that the kidnappers had taken away all my belongings in the car, and the police took me again to a hospital in Akure, where I was treated.”
She, however, enjoined the government at all levels to find a lasting solution to the menace of kidnapping on Nigerian roads, saying that she has been encumbered by fear to travel since the incident.
“Owo Road has become a snare because of kidnappers. I can’t go home again because I am afraid of this. I am afraid to go to Owo. There was a funeral of a relative recently, but I could not go because of fear on the road. I had to send my support,” Mrs. Ale said.
