IT is no longer news that the chairman of Bond Chemicals Ltd, Awe, Oyo State, Chief Adebowale Omotosho was abducted on Wednesday, March 4 by a gang of kidnappers, some of who were itinerant criminals who came from Port Harcourt to operate in Oyo State. But the event that led to the rescue on Tuesday March 10, as well as the story of the female among them, is interesting and captivating.
Seven suspected members of the kidnap gang arrested were Bisi Babatunde (34), said to be on the wanted list of the police in Rivers State, Laide Shittu (28), Ajayi Olaniyi (40), Isiaka Kazeem, Alabi Olufemi, Oladipupo Abayomi and Ayobami Musa (23). Two other suspects – Lucky David and Wasiu a.k.a Korea are currently on the run.
Crime Report learnt that one of the suspects, Laide Shittu, was first to be picked. Locating the kidnappers’ hideout at Ajia Village was not easy either, as SARS operatives from Oyo/Ogbomoso Annexe, led by their officer-in-charge, Olusola Aremu, stayed in the bush for two days, before they discovered the hideout.
On the day the suspects were arrested, the SARS team was divided into two – one in the bush and one in the hotel where Bisi Babatunde lodged. The team in the bush was reported to have stayed there from midnight till the following morning when they struck and rescued Chief Omotosho.
Crime and Security spoke with Bisi. Below are her confessions:
Bisi Adetutu Babatunde’s (a.k.a Bisola Vivian):
I am from Awe, Oyo State. I left home 22 years ago at a tender age. No one cared about me in my family when my mother died and she was divorced from my father. My brother, Ayobami and I ran to Ibadan and started sleeping under the bridge. I got impregnated early and by the time I clocked 20 years, I had had three children for the same man.
“I was in his village at Ilora with his mother but when the suffering was too much, I ran away with my children. I left them with my sister and left for Port Harcourt. I worked as a labourer at a food canteen and then started supplying sand.
“In the process, I was duped of N500,000 given me by one Army Colonel. It was through this I knew the syndicate fronting as herbs sellers but who were into fraud. They opened up to me on their business and asked me to bring clients to them. I met Araba where we were drinking at a joint and he said women were good for their business as they could help in luring victims.
“I bought a car to help me in the 419 business. We are many in the fraud syndicate and operated in different states, among which are Lagos, Oyo, Rivers States. We have offices. We don’t use our real names; we use ‘guy’ names. My own guy name is Bisola Vivian.
“Our leader, Araba, had a problem after duping a client so he ran away from his own office. I gave him a space in my house so that he could be using it as office. Many people started coming to him, and that was how I came in contact with Lucky. He came to Araba for bullet proof charms.
“One day, Lucky and one of his brothers lured another brother who was based abroad to come and do business with some government officials. He involved Araba and Araba also called me to join him at the airport to welcome Lucky’s brother.
“On the way from the airport, the brother was kidnapped by Lucky and others who had laid an ambush. Unfortunately, one of the kidnappers raped a lady in the house where the victim was kept. That was what brought police to the place and they stumbled on the kidnapped victim and released him and others.
“Araba was traced to my house so I left the place and hid somewhere in Port Harcourt. I was well known with my red Toyota Camry car so I sold it and bought another car. A friend of mine gave the information to the police that I had changed my car, so one day, while my boyfriend, one Ramson, was driving it, the police arrested him. This made me leave Port Harcourt for Awe.”
Appealing to Chief Omotosho for the wrong they did to him, Bisi also said that government should also temper justice with mercy. “Chief Omotosho should please forgive us. Four of us are Awe indigenes and it will not be good that we should be jailed. We tried our best to take care of him while he was in captive. He was very ill when he was brought but we took care of him.”
The Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Muhammad Katsina described Bisi Babatunde as one of the most wanted suspects in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. “She is on police ‘wanted’ list and second in command to one Lucky who is hiding somewhere,” he added.
Source:Tribune
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