Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has vowed to demolish a house at the Upper Sakponba Road area of the state where the three members of a gang that kidnapped the wife, daughter and driver of a judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour in May were kept.
Oshiomhole showed visible anger on Tuesday when the suspected kidnappers were paraded before him and pressmen in Benin City, the state capital by the State Director of the State Security Service, Mr. Bello Bakori.
He lamented that despite consistent warnings to owners of buildings in the state to ensure they carry out every investigation concerning intending tenants before they are accepted, the landlord of the building went ahead to allow the kidnappers without proper checks. The house will be demolished at the appropriate time, the governor disclosed.
The suspects, all from Delta State, were among those paraded for extorting their victims and threatening to kill them if they did not oblige. A musician was also paraded for trafficking in persons.
Bakori said the suspects were arrested at their place of residence at Upper Sakponba, and have made confessional statements concerning their crime. Eh equally said three other members of the gang escaped.
“For the landlords, we have already made the decision that anyone that aids and abets kidnapping will have his structure demolished; any hotelier who does not follow the instruction of documenting who stays in the hotel and such are used for kidnapping or human trafficking we will demolish it. Nobody has the right to make money out of the pains of Nigerians,” Oshiomhole said.
Commending the security agencies for eventually apprehending the suspects, he described the arrest as a major breakthrough.
“What is important is for criminals to know that there is no more immunity. It is a matter of when, not whether, they would be caught and that the officers and men are determined to do their best and those involved in crime would be brought to justice,” he said.
“Majority of these criminals, 95 per cent of them are from Delta State. It shows in this business of crime, criminals are very mobile. No state can find a solution, as they keep moving from one State to the other. When their colleagues hear that they have been put on trial, they would look elsewhere.
“The lesson from this effort is that when we report to law enforcement agents, they can be arrested, but when we pay ransom, then we are providing additional incentives for the criminals to remain in business.
“Every ransom we pay is an opportunity for them to do more. For me the message is clear, we must resist paying ransom. We must take law enforcement agencies into confidence. We must trust them. Let me use this opportunity to appeal to our parents that we must watch over our children, particularly our daughters.
“As we heard from one of them arrested, this business is to attract unsuspecting young girls into travel with all kinds of lousy promises. In their innocence, they submit and they take them across the borders and they face all kinds of dehumanizing experiences.”
