SAN FRANCISCO, August 24, (THEWILL) – Mike Ozekhome, SAN, was Friday night abducted by gunmen in Edo State.
A source close to the family told THEWILL that the senior advocate of Nigeria was forcefully taken around Ehor, a small village near Ekpoma, while four policemen attached to him were killed during the incident.
Ozekhome was on his way to Etsako to attend a function, the source said, adding that the gunmen have not made contact with the family.
Kidnapping for a ransom is a common crime in southern Nigeria, but some states like Delta, have made it punishable by death to curb the menace.
Update:
The Edo State Police Command has confirmed the abduction of Human rights lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, along the Benin-Auchi Road in Edo State.
The Command also said it lost four of its men in the bid to rescue the lawyer.
However, the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Foluso Adebanjo, said his men were already closing in on the suspected kidnappers.
Narrating the incident to newsmen Saturday in Benin City, Adebanjo said: “Operatives of the command led by DPO Ehor division responded swiftly to a distress call at about 3:30pm that an unspecified number of armed men had blocked the Benin-Auchi road by Ehor axis. But on their way, the hoodlums ambushed the patrol vehicle and opened fire on them, prompting an exchange of fire.
“At the end of the gun duel, the hoodlums escaped with bullet wounds but not without their victim who was later identified upon search on his abandoned vehicle as Chief Ozekhome (SAN) and his driver.
“Regrettably, the command lost four officers in the encounter. We salute their rare courage and bravery for they fought and died as heroes for the course of humanity. Their death shall not be in vain. We remain undeterred in our fight against armed banditry.”
Meanwhile, the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar, has directed Adebanjo to go after the suspects, vowing to ensure that they are brought to justice.
Force Public Relations Officers, Frank Mba, who disclosed this to journalists said, “The IGP has directed the CP to commence immediate and vigorous manhunt for the hoodlums who must be arrested and brought to justice and the kidnapped victims rescued.
“We therefore once again call on the general public not to relent in their partnership with the police to fish out the criminals as common enemy to our society and report anyone found with the bullet wounds to the nearest police station.”
The abduction of the senior lawyer who was believed to have travelled to attend the burial of the late Police band master, Pa Odiase, on Saturday, came barely two days after the Police Command paraded 44 suspected kidnappers in Benin City, the Edo state capital.
