A Punch reporter, Mr Okechukwu Nnodim, kidnapped at his residence in Arab road area of Kubwa, Abuja, last Wednesday, has been released by his captors. Also freed were two young men who are neighbours to Nnodim that were also kidnapped by the criminals.
When The Sun contacted Oluchi, Nnodim’s wife, Saturday night, the jubilant woman said: ‘My husband is back home and taking his bath. You can’t talk to him right now. Thank you for your support. We thank God for everything.’
The three men regained freedom at about 11 pm Saturday night after spending three nights in captivity.
Groups such as the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Federal Capital Territory chapter, the International Press Centre and the Media Rights Agenda, among others, had called for his unconditional release.
Narrating the incident on Thursday, Oluchi had explained that her husband was working on his laptop when five strange men scaled the fence and entered their compound while ordering them to open the door.
She added that the armed criminals then opened fire to let them know that the matter was no tea party. The bullets shattered on the windows in Nnodim’s apartment and in the end, the kidnappers pulled down the burglary proof and forced open the entrance door.
While that went on, his wife and kids hid in one of the bedrooms while the gunmen demanded cash and when they could not get that, they took all their phones. Thereafter, they marched Nnodim to his neighbour’s apartment, Mrs Faith Gbeyide, abducted her two young sons in their 20s and took the three of them away on foot through the hilly terrain.
