KIDNAPPERS KINGPIN DIRECTS OPERATIONS FROM PRISON

A prisoner coordinates kidnapping from Port Harcourt Prison.

The suspects paraded yesterday in Port harcourt, Rivers State.
That was what a 33-year-old suspect, Cyprian Nwanfo, paraded by the Rivers State Police Command, revealed yesterday.

Cyprian Nwanfo disclosed that their kidnap gang activities are controlled from the prison by their leader, one Prosper David.

According to Nwanfo, Prosper would call to give them instruction on who to kidnap, how much should be collected as ransom and how it should be shared among members of the five-man gang.

To convince police he was saying the truth, Nwanfo spoke with Prosper with his phone. Prosper, who did not know Nwanfo had been arrested, told him to lie low because police were on their trail.

He said their recent kidnap victim was a female, who paid 10 million Naira as ransom, adding that Prosper got three million naira as his share, which they routed through Proper’s wife.

‘We took an oath’

He said: “My name is Cyprian Ifanyi Nwanfo. I am 33 years old and from Abia State. Our Oga is the man in prison; his name is Prosper David.

“My friend Chuks Okozie, who is also in prison, introduced me into bunkering, before they introduced guns into our business. We took oath and were told we cannot quit; if we do, we will die.

“Tugo Man is the next to Prosper. He takes order from Prosper. When we kidnap, we share to Oga in prison. I got one million naira from the 10 million a female (names and profession withheld) we kidnapped paid this year.

“We give the share of our Oga to his wife at Abuloma end of Port Harcourt. We do not talk to the woman when she comes.”

Police also paraded Sylvanus George, who organised the kidnap of 80-year-old mother of Rivers Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs Patience Tam-George.

George said: “I am 35 years. I do not do anything. I dropped out of University of Port Harcourt. I organised the kidnap of the Commissioner’s mother to make money from the commissioner.

“I could not get anything because Ateke Atom arrested me and handed me over to the Police.”

Meanwhile, Rivers State Police Commissioner, Mr. Musa Kimo, said 25 armed robbers were shot dead by police in January, with 92 arrested.

He said police also gun down 21 kidnappers and rescued 17 hostages in same month.

According to him, 555 ammunition, 18 AK-47 rifles and N1,250,000,000 were among items recovered from robbers last month.