By Dr Innocent Chidumebi Okonkwo.
The men of the Nigerian Army, Anambra East, killed one of the suspected kidnappers in a foiled kidnapping and armed robbery operation along Ezi Jim Nwobodo-Igbariam Road in Anambra East local government Area of Anambra State and rescued the victim.
Addressing the OMT reporters after the incident, the PG of Aguleri community, Barr Rolex Ifeanyi Iloakasia narrated that the troops who were on patrol with other security agencies encountered a group of hoodlums suspected to be kidnappers while the bandits were abducting some travellers on the road.
He said, “The bandits attempted to kidnap a young man in an ash colour Lexus 330 2006 model.
“On sighting the troops, the kidnappers tried to engage the troops in a gun battle but were defeated due to troops’ firepower. This resulted in the killing of one of the kidnappers while others escaped into the forest with varying degrees of gunshot wounds.”
He noted that after the incident, four of the kidnapped victims were rescued and taken to Otuocha police station while some items like 1 Ak47 raffle and 1 pump action gun were also recovered at the scene of the incident.
He advised the general public to give useful information on any suspected criminals and their hideouts to the security agencies of the state.