A former Permanent Secretary, Sir Ignatius Brown, has been kidnapped by unknown gunmen at his home in Abak Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom State.
According to Daily Post, he was kidnapped some few metres from his home on Monday on his way home after the church meeting.
As gathered from an eyewitness, who identified himself as Mr. Aniefiok Marcus, the kidnappers had trailed the retired permanent secretary from the church along Abak-Ikot Ekpene road and overtook his driver.
He said, “They (the hoodlums) trailed him from the Saint John’s Catholic Cathedral along Abak-Ikot Ekpene road, and overpowered the driver close to the house on Udokpo Street, after shooting sporadically to scare away other vehicles and commuters on the road.
“When they (the kidnappers) succeeded in halting the Toyota RAV4 SUV of Sir Brown, they bundled the driver out, hijacked the vehicle and sped away with him lying down on the floor,” he stated.
He went on to say that the car was later found abandoned along the Abak-Ekparakwa route after the kidnappers had fled with the victim to an unknown location.
The incident has been confirmed by the state Police Public Relations Officer, Odiko Macdon who disclosed that one suspect had been arrested and is helping the command to track down other gang members.
“We have received that report already and as we speak, preliminary investigation is ongoing. The Commissioner of Police, Olatoye Durusinmi, has detailed the Officer-in-Charge of kidnapping and other tactical teams to ensure that the victim is successfully rescued and reunited with his family.
“Based on the CP’s instructions, a lot had already been done. We have one person in our custody who is helping us with the necessary information, and I believe that the kidnapped victim will soon regain his freedom,” he said.
