The Kano State Police Command said it has arrested one Bamuwa Umaru, 62, for offering N1 million as bribe to secure the release of a suspected kidnapper.
The Command’s spokesman, SP Abdullahi Haruna-Kiyawa, confirmed the arrest in a statement he issued on Tuesday.
Haruna-Kiyawa said: “On December 16, 2022 at about 2:00p.m, Bamuwa Umaru, resident of Shika town Kaduna State, approached the Officer in charge of Anti-Kidnapping Squad, State Criminal Investigation Department, Kano Command, SP Aliyu Mohammed.
“The suspect offered the sum of N1 million as bribe to secure the release of a suspected kidnapper, Yusuf Ibrahim, 27, of Danjibga village, Zamfara State.”
Haruna-Kiyawa said that the suspected kidnapper was arrested by a team of Operation Restore Peace led by CSP Usman Abdullahi, Divisional Police Officer Rijiyar Zaki Division, Kano.
He added: “Yusuf Ibrahim was identified by a driver they kidnapped along Funtuwa-Gusau Road, and collected the sum of N500,000 as ransom before his release.
“On preliminary investigations, Ibrahim confessed to the crime and further confessed to have participated in series of kidnapping at Sheme, Yankara, Faskari and Kucheri villages in Katsina and Zamfara States, respectively.
“Ibrahim also confessed that their syndicate killed about 10 of their kidnapped victims, and he alone killed two of the victims.
“The suspects would be charged to court upon completion of the investigation.”
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mamman Dauda, commended the people of the state, security agencies, media, vigilance groups, the command’s community policing team and other stakeholders for their prayers, support, encouragement and cooperation.
Dauda assured residents of adequate security, warning those planning to disrupt the peace to stay away as “Kano state remains a no go area for evil planners.”