In a renewed onslaught against crime, officers and men of the Rivers Police Command hound kidnappers, even as the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) routs drug syndicate operating in Rivers State
By Chinedu Oguh, Port Harcourt
The Rivers State Police command has recorded a major breakthrough in its fight against kidnapping with the arrest of two suspects linked to a series of abductions in Etche Local Government Area of the state.
Police Public Relations Officers, CSP Grace Iringe-Koko on February 4, 2026, in a statement disclosed that the suspects were arrested in connection with the kidnapping of a female victim and three others on January 19, 2026, at Elele Waterside in Etche Local Government Area.
According to the Police, operatives attached to the Anti-Cultism Unit (ACU) Emohua Annex, acting on credible intelligence, intercepted the suspects along the Ozuzu Apara Link Road in Etche Local Government Area on January 22, 2026, about 8:49pm.
The suspects were identified as Abdullahi Ibrahim, 23 from Avara and Mohammed Hashim, 27 from Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
A search conducted on them led to the recovery of N2,383,000 said to be part of the ransom paid by the families of kidnapped victims.
Police said preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects confessed to the crime and admitted involvement in several other kidnappings, including abduction of two female victims from Akpolu Community, Etche Local Government Area on January 8, 2026.
The command further alleged that the gang was responsible for the killing of a youth from the community who attempted to deliver a ransom of N3,800,000 to the kidnappers on January 13, 2026.
During further investigation, the suspects reportedly led Police Operatives to their hideouts, however, the operations were said to have come under attack from other gang members, leading to an exchange of gun fire. In the process, the two suspects sustained fatal injuries while other members of the gang escaped into nearby bushes.
Exhibits recovered during the operations included one Pump-action gun and the sum of N2,383,000. The Rivers State Police Command said efforts were on-going to arrest the fleeing suspects and recover their weapons.
Reacting to the development, the commissioner of Police CP Olugbenga Adepoju commended the operatives for their professionalism and bravery, reiterating the command’s zero-tolerance stance on crime.
He urged residents to continue supporting the Police with timely and useful information and appealed to members of the public to report anyone seeking medical treatment for suspicious gunshot injuries.
Similarly, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have raided a notorious drug enclave known as Ama Hausa in Bonny Island, Rivers State where six suspects were arrested and a significant cache of illicit substances, including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine skunk and tramadol was recovered.
This was made known in a statement to the press by the Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, Femi Babafemi.
Unfortunately, an NDLEA personnel lost his life as a result of severe head injuries sustained when the drug dealers mobilized armed hoodlums to attack operatives during the raid.
Notwithstanding the violent attacks, the NDELA operatives were able to apprehend all the six targets of the raid including the gang leader, Genesis George Benson, who is responsible for the death of the NDLEA operative.
Other suspects arrested during the strategic operation at the Ama Hausa area of Bonny Island, a well-known hub for criminal activities on Friday, February 6, 2026 are ThankGod Okon, Shamsudden Isa, Muhammadu Musa, Adamu Muhammed and Muhammed Yusuf.
According to the statement, the operation took a tragic turn when one of the suspects, Genesis George Benson mobilized a group of armed hoodlums to attack the operatives in a bid to escape arrest.
During the ensuring violent confrontation, an officer, Chief Narcotice Agent, Sadiq Bako Mujahid sustained severe head injuries despite being rushed immediately to Bonny Island General Hospital for emergency medical attention, but he succumbed to the severity of his injuries.
Reacting to the development, the Chairman Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa (rtd.) commended the bravery and resilience of the officers who stood their ground despite brutal attack.
He said “I salute the gallantry of our men who refused to be intimidated by these criminal elements even the cowardly attack on Mujahid, our operatives ensured that the assailants were over-powered and arrested and their illicit substances confiscated their sacrifice will not be in vain.
While mourning the loss of Mujahid, he (Marwa) described him as a disciplined and courageous officer who paid the ultimate price in the service of his fatherland.
“We extend our deepest condolences to his family, his colleagues and Rivers State command any attack on our officers is an attack on the state, and will not go without dire consequences. We remain undeterred in his mission to continue to take the fight to the enclaves of these merchants of death,” he said.
