Murder of Seminarian: IG Orders Manhunt for Fleeing Suspects, Arrest Three

The Inspector-General of Police (IG), Mr. Mohammed Adamu, on Sunday ordered a manhunt for suspected killers of Catholic seminarian, Mr.  Nnadi Michael of the Catholic Good Shepherd Major Seminary at Gonin Gora, Kakau in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

Three members of the gang, who kidnapped the seminarian, were also arrested by police detectives.

The kidnap gang on January 9, 2020, stormed the catholic seminary and kidnapped four seminarians, murdered one of them in cold blood and released the remaining three on January 31, 2020, having obtained a ransom.

The remains of the fourth seminarian were found in a bush abandoned.

A statement issued by Force Headquarters in Abuja listed the arrested suspects to include Tukur Usman, a male, 37, father of 7; Shehu Bello ‘m’, 40, father of 5 and Mustapha Mohammed ‘m’, 30, father of one, all from Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

It said they were arrested after several months of intensive and extensive intelligence-led operations by crack detectives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT).

According to him, "Discreet investigations so far revealed that the arrested suspects are part of a 19-man gang that also carried out the kidnap of Dr. Phillip Ataga’s wife and her two daughters on January 24, 2020, at Juji community in Chikun LGA of Kaduna State.

"Mrs. Ataga was killed by the gang following her heroic resistance to the despicable and inhuman attempt by the leader of the gang to rape her. The suspects, after killing her, released the daughters and corpse of the slain woman to the family after collecting ransom."

The statement signed by the Force Public Relations Officer and Deputy Commissioner of Police, Frank Mba, said further investigations revealed that the same criminal gang is responsible for the kidnap of six students and two teachers of Engravers College, Chikun LGA, Kaduna, from their school premises on October 3, 2019.

"The suspects, known to belong to a hybrid terrorist criminal network causing untold havoc in the North-central region of Nigeria, have confessed to several other random operations along Abuja-Kaduna expressway where they kidnapped, killed and robbed motorists, collecting ransom and valuables running into millions of naira.

"The IG, Adamu, while reiterating that the force will remain unrelenting in ensuring that crimes across the country are reduced to the barest minimum, assured the country that the force will not rest until the other members of the gang also responsible for the above crimes, but currently on the run, are apprehended and brought to book," Mba said.