Police Arrest Killers Of 93Yrs Father Of Former Governor Dariye Of Plateau State
Nab 2 others for virtual kidnapping
BY EVELYN DADU, ABUJA – The Nigeria Police on Wednesday said its operatives of the Intelligence Response Unit arrested eight notorious high-profile kidnapping suspects indicted in its investigations for the abduction and eventual murder of Pa Dariye Dafwan, the late father of former Governor of Plateau State, Chief Joshua Dariye in Horop community of Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State.
The Police said that Pa Dariye was abducted on June 17, 2020 and shot dead eight days after the criminals had collected a ransom of ten million naira from the family of the deceased.
A statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, CP Frank Mba, said that the arrest of the suspects followed the police unrelenting efforts to ensure that the perpetrators of the dastardly act are arrested and made to face the wrath of the law.
Mba said that the breakthrough that led to the arrest of the suspects began with the arrest of one Abubakar Mohammed a.k.a Buba ‘m’ 23yrs, native of Gada Biyu in Daffo district, Bokkos LGA, Plateau State.
The statement said that Buba is one of the principal suspects in the kidnap operation, adding that the confession of the suspect which revealed how they abducted and murdered the nonagenarian, assisted the Police team in apprehending seven other members of the gang.
The Police said that the members of the gang include; Ya’u Saidu aka Ya’u Kaban m’ 40yrs, from Kaban Village, Bokkos LGA, Plateau State, Titus Ezekiel 34yrs from from Horop, Bokkos LGA, Dauda Isah ‘m’ 30yrs, from Horop, Sunday Ibrahim m’ 35yrs, Mushere tribe from Horop, Mangut Shumwar ‘m’ 30yrs, from Horop, Henry Amos ‘m’ 35yrs native of Horop, and Jethro Ngusen ‘m’ 57yrs, native of Horop.
The police spokesman said that 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 recognize them since majority of them are from the same village with the deceased.
The statement also said that Jethro was also identified as the person who took custody of the ransom and later shared the proceeds of the crime amongst the gang members.
In a related development, the Police said that its team arrested one Sadiq Abubakar ‘m’ 31yrs old from Kogi State and one Peter Moses ‘m’ 25yrs old from Kaduna State, who abducted a 22yr-old lady to a location in Suleja.
The Police further said; “The suspects held the young lady hostage, had repeated canal knowledge of the victim and extorted money from her parents as ransom before her release.
“Investigations by the Police team show that the suspects, who are serial virtual kidnappers, usually meet their victims on social media platforms particularly, Facebook, and thereafter lure them to their criminal hideout before subjecting them to sexual molestation and further obtaining ransom from their families.
The Police operatives also intercepted three suspects, Emmanuel Joel 42yrs, Ayuba Joel, 30yrs, Hassan Umar, 30yrs on August 28, 2021, in possession of one AK49 rifle loaded with 14 live ammunition and 26 AK47 magazines, at a border town between Nasarawa and Taraba State. It said that investigations revealed that the suspects are criminal arms dealers who supply weapons to criminal elements in Nasarawa and Taraba States.
The Police said that efforts are being intensified to arrest members of the gang currently at large.
Meanwhile, 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. IGP Baba advised users of the social media to remain circumspect and protect themselves from cyber crooks masquerading as online friends.
The statement said that all the suspects will be charged to court on completion of investigations.
