Delta Police Arrest Suspected Kidnapper in Ibusa, Recover N900,000 and Weapons

Operatives of the Delta State Police Command’s Special Anti-Kidnapping and Cyber-Crime Squad have arrested a 26-year-old suspected kidnapper, Lawal Tasiu, said to be part of a notorious gang terrorizing communities in the Ibusa/Ogwashi-Uku/Issele-Azagba axis.

The arrest followed a kidnap incident at Itego Community, Ibusa, near Asaba, where a victim (name withheld) was abducted and an undisclosed ransom was paid.

Delta State Commissioner of Police, CP Olufemi Abaniwonda, who made this known during a press briefing on Thursday in Asaba, said the suspect was apprehended on May 12, 2025, at about 10:30 a.m. following a hot pursuit.

“Acting on credible intelligence relating to a kidnap incident at Itego Community, the Commander of the Special Anti-Kidnapping and Cyber-Crime Squad mobilized operatives to Koka Junction, Asaba, where Lawal Tasiu, a resident of the FCT, Abuja, was arrested after a hot chase,” CP Abaniwonda said.

According to the Commissioner, a search of the suspect led to the recovery of N900,000, suspected to be part of the ransom collected from the kidnapped victim.

“During interrogation, the suspect confessed to being a member of a syndicate responsible for several kidnappings in the Ibusa/Ogwashi-Uku/Issele-Azagba areas. He admitted the money found on him was his share of the ransom,” Abaniwonda added.

The Commissioner further disclosed that on May 13, 2025, at about 6:30 a.m., the suspect led police operatives to the gang’s hideout in Issele-Azagba, where an arms cache was uncovered.

Recovered items include:

• One (1) AK-47 rifle
• One (1) pump-action gun
• Two (2) AK-47 magazines
• Eighty-seven (87) rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition

The police boss reaffirmed the command’s commitment to intensifying the fight against kidnapping and other violent crimes across the state.