Officials of the Lagos State Police Command have rescued the three schoolgirls who were abducted from Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary, Agunfoye-Lugbusi, in the Ikorodu area of the state.
The girls were rescued in the early hours of Monday, March 6, 2016 at the Igbokuta area of the State following intelligence reports.
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Three suspects were also arrested during the rescue operation in connection with the abduction that took place on Monday, February 29, 2016.
The kidnappers were said to have demanded a ransom of N100 million from the families of the victims, and reportedly reduced the sum to N20 million per student.
Speaking to newsmen on Sunday, March 6, 2016 the Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, identified the suspects to include one Emmanuel (Arigidi) who was actively involved in the abduction, Seun Akanji, and one Henry who were conspirators.
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He said: “With respect to the state of the girls, they are very well and they are stable.
“I can confirm that immediate medical attention just to test them up has been given to them by the police medical team and I can as well tell you that as we picked them up, one of the questions we asked the girls was whether they were molested in any way and the three of them stated unequivocally that they were not molested in any way.
“When you talk about ransom in cases like this, you are glorifying kidnapping.
“We should not be talking about ransom anymore in this country because if you do, you are telling others that kidnapping is viable and you can be going and kidnapping people to collect money.
“But I want to also say that what was employed in rescuing the girls is more of application of intelligence-led policing using the platform of technology, partnering with members of the community and pressures on the kidnappers because what we have done with other security agencies is that we also went for members of their families including their mothers, their fathers, their children and with that pressure they found out that there was no way again for them to keep on keeping the girls and that was what led to the success we recorded in rescuing the girls.”
The prime suspect in the abduction, Arigidi, revealed that 12 people were involved in the operation which was planned at the Majidun area of Ikorodu.
He said: “We went to Maya bridge to enter canoe and went to the school around 8pm.
“After we gained entrance into the school, we took away three girls and we took them to our hideout. But along the line, we had disagreement between ourselves and I was actually the one that started it. I told other members of the gang that what we have done is not good and that I don’t like it.
“I know that security in Lagos State is now tight and I was telling others that there was no way we would get away with this kind of job considering the level of security in the state.
“Three days after I ran away, operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) then arrested me somewhere in Majidun and that was how I told them how we planned the attack.
“One thing I will like to say is that if not for the fact that I was arrested, they would not have seen the girls because I was the one that revealed everything to the police.”
Governor Akinwunmi Ambode said the girls had been “safely reunited” with their families.
“Let me warn that the Lagos State will not tolerate kidnapping or any forms of crime in the state.
“Our position is clear and unambiguous. Lagos State had the capacity and the will to go after every form of crime and criminality in order to safeguard lives and property in the state.”
