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A married woman identified as Oluchi has been found in a hotel in Delta State after she allegedly staged her own kidnapping and demanded millions of naira in ransom from her family.
The incident came to light after police investigations into a reported kidnapping in Edo State led detectives to a hotel in Ubiaroko, Delta State, where the woman was allegedly discovered with a male companion.
Family members had earlier told the police that Oluchi was kidnapped around Ikpoba Hill area of Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of Edo State.
Following the news, his relatives began efforts to secure his release, while appeals were launched for financial assistance to raise the ransom allegedly demanded by his kidnappers. The initial demand was said to be 50 million naira before it was later reduced to 20 million naira.
According to a source close to the investigation, police tracked down the phone number of the man allegedly linked to the case and traced it to the hotel where both individuals were found.
“The police located the suspect at a hotel in Ubiaroko and found the woman there with him. Her husband was contacted and informed after they were taken to the station,” the source said.
The source added that the woman begged her husband not to reveal the circumstances of her disappearance to her children.
Reacting to the development, his daughter Anita, who resides in Canada, expressed shock and disappointment in a video released online.
He said the family had believed the abduction report and had only sought public support to secure his mother’s release.
“My mother has been released. We have now been informed that it was not a real kidnapping. I just did what any daughter would do to save her mother. The family is devastated and in shock,” she said.
Anita said that no ransom was paid and that donations already received will be refunded.
He added that the family involved the police from the beginning and only later learned that his mother was allegedly involved in orchestrating the incident.
The Harmony Ladies Club, a social group to which Anita belongs, also expressed disappointment at the development.
In a statement, the group said members had provided emotional, logistical and financial support after learning of the alleged kidnapping, only to discover through investigations that the incident had allegedly been staged.
“It is with a deep sense of betrayal that we learned that the kidnapping was allegedly orchestrated by Ms. Oluchi herself,” the statement read.
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson of the Edo State Police Command, CSP Eno Ikoedem, said four suspects have been arrested in connection with the case.
“I can confirm the incident and also let you know that four people have been arrested in connection with it,” he said.
Police said investigations are ongoing and those found guilty will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
