How Man Hired Assasins As Fake EFCC Officials To Kidnap & Kill Business Associates

KINGSLEY EBERE 

Police intelligence operatives from the Akwa Ibom State Police Command have arrested four suspected assassins, who were hired as fake officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) by a principal suspect to eliminate his business associate he owes N12m. 

P.M.EXPRESS reports that the principal suspect, Emmanuel Augustine Akpayak, 27, allegedly hired Echem Ovurizichi Weneka, 27, Promise Udofia, 28, and Jeremiah Johnson Okon, 38, to carry out the dastardly act before the Police foiled the operation.

According to the Police, the plan was to use the EFCC vest as camouflage to kidnap the target, collect N150m as ransom and kill him to give the impression that he was kidnapped and murdered.

This was disclosed by the Commissioner of Police, CP Waheed Ayilara, who said the suspects were planning to abduct and collect a ransom of N150 million from the victim.

The Police boss, Ayilara, said that the principal suspect, Emmanuel Akpayak, masterminded the kidnap of the would-be-victim whom he owed over N12 million.

He said, “Investigation revealed that Emmaneul Augustine Akpayak had arranged for the kidnap and killing of the would-be victim by engaging men on arms and procuring EFCC vest/uniform for the operation”.

“The victim was invited and a search was conducted at the principal suspect’s house, where four pairs of EFCC vest were recovered.”

“Information at hand indicates that the suspect transacted the business of selling cars with the would-be victim and owed the victim about Twelve Million Naira (N12,000,000.00). In order to evade the repayment of debt, the suspect hired armed men to kidnap, extort the sum of One Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N150,000,000.00) and also kill the victim thereafter but the operation was foiled.”

While speaking with journalists during the parade at the State Police headquarters, the principal suspect, Akpayak, claimed that the intending victim was his business associate.
He claimed the victim hired “boys” that were issuing threats to him and attempts to make his associate to come to a round table discussion failed hence he resorted to getting EFCC vest from an online vendor and gave to his gang members, who posed as officials of the anti-graft agency to arrest the man and force him to bring N150 million as ransom.

The Police stated that the suspects will be charged before Court for the alleged offence under the Criminal Laws of the State but that will be after the conclusion of investigations by the Police.