Residents of Ajowa-Akoko, an agrarian border town between Ondo and Kogi states, were in a fluster at the weekend when the son of a prominent chief in the community was arrested on suspicion of being the leader of a notrious kidnap squad.

The development was contrary to the general belief that Fulani herdsmen were behind incessant kidnapping and robbery in the Akoko area of the state.

A school teacher and Muslim cleric, Alhaji Jamiu Zakariyahu was abducted last Wednesday while coming from a mosque between 7.30 and 8pm by a gang of seven kidnappers at gunpoint.

It was the escape of the victim after two days of torture and long trekking that led to the arrest of an indigene of Ajowa-Akoko, Wasiu Mohammed, as the alleged gang leader.

It was learnt that the two phones belonging to the victims used in the forest by the gang for negotiations were recovered in the ceilings of Wasiu Mohammed’s residence by the soldiers who tracked the two lines.

This led to the arrest of the gang members.

There was wild jubilation in Ajowa-Akoko, as people were praising the soldiers for the way the arrest was made.

Meanwhile, the victim, Zakariyau was said to have fallen ill due to stress and trauma he went through.

Sources said he has been hospitalised in an undisclosed hospital.

The chairman of Ajowa-Akoko community, Ajayi Bakare has commended the security men on the way they unraveled the alleged crime.

He urged parents to always monitor their children and residents and report the movement of strange faces in the community. (The Nation)