The Nigeria Police Force's Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) has arrested Idris Mohammed, a 27-year-old suspect accused of kidnapping and other related crimes. According to the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, Mohammed was apprehended for his alleged involvement in the kidnapping of a commercial driver, Idris Zakari Baba, and other crimes. The suspect, an indigene of Bauchi State, was operating as an informant, bandit, and kidnapper, luring unsuspecting drivers into locations where armed kidnappers would abduct and extort them.
Mohammed's modus operandi involved chartering a vehicle to go on a journey, only to lure the unsuspecting driver into a web already laid to kidnap, and he would need to pay a ransom before regaining freedom. The suspect would often make a phone call during the journey, after which armed kidnappers on motorcycles would intercept them. In one instance, Mohammed hired a driver for ₦300,000 to travel from Abuja to Zaria, unaware of the suspect's criminal intention. On their way, Mohammed made a phone call, and six armed kidnappers intercepted them, taking both Mohammed and the driver.
The kidnappers initially took both Mohammed and the driver but later separated them. The kidnappers told the driver that Mohammed had been killed, threatening to kill him unless he paid ₦3 million. In fear, the driver contacted his relatives, who raised the ransom, and he was released. However, when the driver returned to look for his vehicle, it was missing. It was later discovered that Mohammed, who the kidnappers had claimed was killed, had taken the vehicle to Bauchi State.
Further investigation linked Mohammed to the reported kidnapping of Pastor David Dahni and his driver, Abdullahi Abubakar, for which a ransom of ₦10.5 million was reportedly paid. The vehicle used in the kidnapping, a 2012 Toyota Corolla, was subsequently traced to Bauchi State and recovered while Mohammed was attempting to sell it. The suspect's arrest was facilitated by a phone number found inside the car, which was used to verify its ownership.
In an interview, Mohammed confessed to the allegations against him. The suspect, who is married to two wives and has one child, said he started mining three years ago before he began engaging in kidnapping. Mohammed revealed that the idea to start kidnapping was conceived with his three friends – Haruna, Yahuza, and Dawah – who are currently at large.
Mohammed met Yahuza on Tiktok in March, and Yahuza brought the idea of kidnapping. The suspect decided to join Yahuza, who asked if he was also a member of a bandit gang, and Mohammed told him he was not but was ready to start. Yahuza agreed to take Mohammed in and said that he should start by bringing a victim. Mohammed decided to go for drivers, pretending to be a passenger, and on May 14, he got his first victim into the kidnappers' net.
The suspect's first operation involved a man called Babandi, who told Mohammed that he had a master who was in New Karu, Nyanya, FCT. Babandi's master had a friend who was a miner, and it was believed that he had money, so they convinced him that there was a mining site somewhere. The driver agreed, charged Mohammed an amount which he paid, and they left Abuja. The gang members told Mohammed that they would refund his money if the plan failed.
Key points
- - The suspect, Idris Mohammed, hired cars to lure drivers into abduction and extortion. - Mohammed's modus operandi involved making a phone call during the journey, after which armed kidnappers would intercept them. - The suspect was linked to multiple kidnappings, including that of Pastor David Dahni and his driver, Abdullahi Abubakar.
