Police arrest kidnappers, murderers of Dariye’s father
Story from Yakubu VENTIM, Jos
The Nigeria Police said that officers of the Intelligence Response Unit have arrested eight suspects who allegedly kidnapped and murdered 92-year-old Dariye Dafwan, father of a former Governor of Plateau State, Joshua Dariye.
Dariye Dafwan was killed by his abductors in June 2020 even after N10 million ransom was paid to the kidnappers.
In a statement signed by the police spokesperson, Frank Mba, officers were able to successfully apprehend the entire gang members after careful investigations and intelligence gatherings.
While parading the suspects, Mba explained that Mr Dafwan Dariye, whose son was a two-term governor, was held incommunicado for about eight days under unsanitary conditions.
Watch video of Police parading the suspects in Plateau state:
He said “The breakthrough that led to the arrest of the suspects began with the arrest of one Abubakar Mohammed a.k.a Buba ‘m’ 23yrs, a native of Gada Biyu in Daffo district, Bokkos LGA, Plateau State. Buba is one of the principal suspects in the kidnap.
The statement further said “Operatives of the Intelligence Response Unit of the Nigeria Police Force have arrested eight (8) notorious high-profile kidnapping suspects indicted in Police investigations for the abduction and eventual murder of Pa Dariye Dafwan, the late father of former Governor of Plateau State, in Horop community, Bokkos LGA of Plateau State.
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“Pa Dariye was abducted on 17th June 2020 and shot dead eight (8) days after the criminals collected a ransom of 10 million naira from the family of the deceased. The arrest of the suspects follows unrelenting efforts by the Police to ensure perpetrators of the dastardly act are arrested and made to face the wrath of the law.
“After much investigation, the police arrest the kidnapper’s leader, and the mastermind of the crime, who gave his confession and revealed the whereabouts of his gang members.
The other suspects include Ya’u Saidu aka Ya’u Kaban (40) from Kaban Village, Bokkos LGA, Plateau State; Titus Ezekiel (34)from Horop, Bokkos LGA; Dauda Isah (30) from Horop; Sunday Ibrahim(35) Mushere tribe from Horop& Mangut Shumwar(30) from Horop; Henry Amos(35) native of Horop, and Jethro Ngusen (57) also a native of Horop.
The police spokesperson said after a protracted negotiation with the deceased’s family, a ransom of N10 million was paid to the kidnappers and rather than setting the victim free, he was murdered.
Mba said the incident happened in June 2020, adding that the police investigation began immediately after the recovery of the victim’s body whose son is currently serving a jail term in Kuje correctional facility over corruption charges.
The police spokesperson also noted that most of the kidnappers were indigenes of Bokkos, where Mr Dariye was kidnapped.
“This crime is laced with wickedness. He was kept and treated in a manner that was unbefitting of his status and age,” the police statement said.
“After a protracted negotiation, a ransom of 10 million Naira was paid to these kidnappers, rather than letting the innocent old man go home, the kidnappers, in addition to the trauma they made Pa Dariye go through, murdered him in cold blood.
“Within the last 30 days, the police were able to make tremendous progress that led to the arrest of the eight key suspects that played major roles in the kidnap and murder of the ex-governors father.
“All the suspects, except very few of them, were from the same village in Bokkos Local Government Area with the murdered victim. This perhaps explained why they took the very wicked and costly decision of murdering the old man.
“Investigations further revealed that it was Jethro Ngusen, the mastermind and convener of the gang, that instructed one of the gang members, Mangut Shumwar to kill Pa Dariye because he feared that Pa Dariye might recognise the suspects since a majority of them are from the same village with the deceased.
Jethro was also identified as the one who took custody of the ransom and later shared the proceeds of the crime amongst the gang members.
Video of Jethro Ngusen confessing to the crime
Investigations by the Police team later show that the suspects are serial virtual kidnappers, who usually meet their victims on social media platforms particularly, Facebook, and thereafter lure them to their criminal hideouts before subjecting them to sexual molestation and further obtaining ransom from their families.
The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba has assured that the force is committed to working with law-abiding citizens to secure the nation and reduce crimes to the barest minimum in the country. He advised users of social media to be very vigilant and protect themselves from cyber crooks masquerading as online friends.
Mba said all the suspects will be charged to court on completion of investigations.
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