Gunmen Abduct Mourners Escorting FRSC Officer’s Corpse, Demand N450 Million Ransom

Armed men suspected to be kidnappers have abducted nine mourners travelling with the remains of a late Deputy Corps Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Augustine O. Ikwue, after ambushing their vehicle along the Ochadamu-Ejule Road in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State.

The attack occurred at about 6 p.m. on Thursday as the funeral convoy was conveying the deceased officer’s body from Osogbo, Osun State, to his hometown in Otukpo, Benue State, for burial.

The late FRSC officer reportedly died after a brief illness.

The abductors later abandoned the corpse near Ejule community but took nine mourners into captivity, including two FRSC personnel.

Confirming the incident, Kogi State Sector Commander of the FRSC, Lawal Fagge, said the remains of the deceased officer were recovered on Friday after an intensive search and handed over to the family for burial.

“We recovered the corpse of the officer in Ejule community on Friday after frantic searching and handed it over to the family. He was buried on Saturday in his hometown at Otukpo in Benue,” Fagge said.

He disclosed that the kidnappers had contacted the deceased officer’s wife using his mobile phone and demanded N450 million ransom for the release of those held captive.

“The abductors used the cellphone of the deceased officer and called his wife, demanding a huge sum of money for those in their captivity to regain their freedom,” he added.

Security agencies, including the Nigerian Army, the Nigeria Police Force, local hunters and vigilante groups, have reportedly launched a joint operation to rescue the abducted mourners and track down the perpetrators.

The incident has sparked outrage, with many Nigerians expressing shock that the attackers intercepted a funeral convoy and abducted mourners accompanying a deceased public servant to his final resting place.