Bayelsa Woman Regains Freedom After Spending One Month in Kidnappers’ Captivity

Bayelsa Woman Regains Freedom After Spending One Month in Kidnappers’ Captivity

The Bayelsa State Police Command has rescued a 42-year-old woman, Esther Chinedu, nearly one month after she was abducted in Amassoma, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.

Chinedu was kidnapped on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, after suspected kidnappers reportedly entered her phone shop pretending they wanted to purchase an item.

Speaking to journalists on Sunday morning, the Bayelsa State Commissioner of Police, CP Ajao Adewale, said the victim was rescued unharmed from the kidnappers’ hideout in Ogumbri Forest, in the South-Dajo area.

According to Adewale, police received a distress call at about 7 p.m. on the day of the incident and immediately activated the command’s intelligence network to identify and track those responsible.

He explained that information gathered through digital intelligence and local sources eventually helped investigators trace the kidnappers’ movements and monitor their ransom negotiations with Chinedu’s family.

The kidnappers reportedly began by demanding N100 million for her release before reducing the amount to N20 million.

Adewale said operatives of the Crime Response Squad, led by CSP Chris Mark, moved into Ogumbri Forest five days before the eventual rescue and gradually closed in on the kidnappers.

At about 1:45 a.m. on the day of the operation, security personnel stormed the camp, freed Chinedu and arrested one suspected member of the gang.

The arrested suspect was identified as Mark, a 33-year-old man from Akemfa 1 community.

According to the police commissioner, the suspect confessed to participating in the kidnapping and reportedly provided details about how the gang carried out the operation.

Adewale said the suspects approached Chinedu’s shop pretending they wanted to buy food. They allegedly observed the surroundings and, after determining that she was not adequately protected, abducted her.

“They surveyed the environment and saw that the woman was not sufficiently protected. They abducted her, put her in a vehicle and moved her to the riverside, where she was ferried to the camp,” the CP said.

The rescue operation involved officers from the Crime Response Squad, Federal Criminal Investigation Unit and Marine Department.

Adewale praised the personnel involved, particularly officers who endured difficult conditions on the river while searching for the kidnappers. He also thanked the Bayelsa State Government, led by Governor Douye Diri, for providing logistical assistance for the operation.

The police commissioner warned criminals operating within Bayelsa that the command would continue pursuing them.

Following his wife’s rescue, Chinedu’s husband described the difficult experience he endured while negotiating with her abductors.

He said he had travelled to Abia State early on July 28 to purchase mattresses when, shortly after 8 a.m., he began receiving unusual calls informing him that his wife had been kidnapped.

Having lived in Bayelsa for about 20 years without experiencing such an incident in Amassoma, he said he initially struggled to understand why his family had suddenly become a target.

“I have been in Bayelsa for the past 20 years. I have not had anything like kidnapping in Amassoma. Why is it my wife?” he recalled asking himself.

He eventually contacted one of the callers, who confirmed that Chinedu had indeed been abducted.

According to him, the Divisional Police Officer also contacted him and explained that two patrol teams had been deployed to his residence along Amassoma Road.

While travelling back to Bayelsa, he received another call from his wife’s phone. The caller demanded N2 million and instructed him to transfer N1 million each into two separate bank accounts.

At the time, however, he said he had only N300,000 available and transferred the entire amount to one of the accounts provided.

After arriving in Amassoma, the kidnappers contacted him again and warned him not to make any further payments into the earlier account.

Another suspect then reportedly took over the conversation and increased the ransom demand to N100 million.

After repeated appeals from the husband, who explained that he could not raise such an amount, the kidnappers eventually reduced their demand to N20 million.

Negotiations continued for several days, and the abductors later demanded N3 million.

The husband said he subsequently raised another N1.5 million and transferred it to an account supplied by the kidnappers, bringing the total amount he had paid to approximately N1.8 million.

Despite receiving the money, the kidnappers allegedly refused to release his wife and continued demanding additional payment.

The ordeal also reportedly caused tension between the two families. Chinedu’s mother allegedly confronted her son-in-law’s mother over what she believed was a delay in securing her daughter’s freedom.

The kidnappers later demanded another N3.5 million, promising that Chinedu would be released once the money was paid.

Before that could happen, however, her husband received the news he had been waiting for: the police had located and rescued his wife.

“When they called me and said, ‘Come around and hand over your wife to me,’ that was when I knew the police had carried out their mission,” he said.

He described the nearly month-long ordeal as extremely difficult, explaining that he had moved their children away from the family home because of safety concerns.

His young son repeatedly asked about his mother, leaving him unsure of what explanation to give.

“When I went there yesterday, my last one was like, ‘Where is your mummy?’ I don’t really know what to answer the little boy,” he said.

Chinedu also narrated what happened on the day she was kidnapped.
According to her, the suspects entered her shop pretending to be customers. When she went inside, they suddenly produced guns and took her away.

“They said they wanted to buy something from my shop. Then, as I entered, that was when they brought out the gun and carried me,” she recalled.

She said her daughter and another woman who was present at the shop were left behind.

The kidnappers then transported Chinedu using several boats before eventually arriving at the location where she would spend almost a month in captivity.

She said she never knew exactly where she was being held and described conditions at the hideout as extremely difficult.

“There was like two or three days to a month. And the place was very terrible, very, very terrible,” she said.

Although her captors provided food, Chinedu said she frequently refused to eat because of the emotional distress she was experiencing.

She stated that she was not sexually assaulted and was not seriously beaten while being held captive. However, she recalled one occasion when one of the kidnappers struck her while she was praying.

Chinedu also confirmed that the gang initially demanded N100 million before eventually bringing the ransom demand down to N20 million.

After regaining her freedom, she expressed gratitude to God and the security personnel responsible for rescuing her.

“I give glory to Almighty God and to you people that rescued me,” she said.
She also prayed for the officers involved, saying, “May God keep, strengthen and guide them. Also, may all that they want God provide it for them.”

The rescue comes as the Bayelsa State Police Command intensifies operations against kidnapping and other criminal activities across the state.

CP Adewale assured residents that police would continue collaborating with relevant stakeholders to make Bayelsa increasingly difficult for criminals to operate.

He also called on members of the public to provide security agencies with useful information and encouraged young people to pursue legitimate economic and empowerment opportunities instead of turning to crime.

(Source: Punch Newspapers)