Tobias Sylvester
Armed men on Saturday struck at Muchalla ward of Mubi North Local Government Area of Adamawa State, killing an uncle of embattled Senator Elisha Abbo who was recently caught on CCTV camera assaulting a lady at a sex toy shop in Abuja.
The suspected kidnappers also abducted Abbo’s nursing stepmother identified as Rifikatu Ishaku, who delivered a baby only 11 days ago.
A witness said the kidnappers stormed their victims’ residence at about 1am yesterday and seized the woman. But as they were taking her away, Abbo’s uncle came out of his room and raised the alarm on sighting the gunmen. This seemed to have infuriated them and they opened fire.
“The gunmen opened fire on him (the uncle), leading to his death, and they went away with the victim unchallenged,” the witness said.
The Adamawa State Police Public Relations Officer, Sulaiman Nguroje, who confirmed the development said efforts were being made to get at the gunmen and free Abbo’s uncle.
He said the Commissioner of Police had deployed specially trained anti-kidnapping officials and they were on the trail of the kidnappers.
The killing and kidnapping in Abbo’s household is coming barely a week after a permanent secretary in the Adamawa State civil service was kidnapped and a N25 million ransom later demanded.
Confirming the incident while addressing journalists in Abuja, Senator Abbo who is currently undergoing investigation over alleged slapping of a lady in an Abuja sex toy shop alleged that military and police personnel know the kidnappers’ hideout which is two kilometres outside Mubi town, adding that they have curiously failed to dislodge the criminals.
In his statement to journalists in Abuja on Saturday evening, Senator Abbo said that about thirteen gunmen wielding Ak-47 rifles killed his uncle.
“About 13 gunmen armed with AK 47, invaded my family house around 1am on Saturday and shot my uncle dead.
“They dragged my father and brothers out of their rooms and went after my step mother when they were told that my biological mother was late. They took the poor woman away and left behind, her 11 day-old child; my stepmother is still with the kidnappers now and the kidnappers have called me with a Cameroonian MTN number but they are yet to demand ransom.
“The Federal Government, the military and the police are not doing enough in the aspect of insecurity in this country.
“The security agencies and the military know the hideouts of the criminals but they will not go after them.
“Of what use is the Army barracks and the Mobile Police base in Mubi when they cannot enter two kilometres into the bush and dislodge the kidnappers?
“The kidnappers are using the ransom they are collecting to fund terrorism in this country, that’s just the truth,” Abbo stated.
