ABUJA, Nigeria – In a major breakthrough, the Nigerian Police Force has confirmed the arrest of a key suspect in the abduction and murder of Nabeeha Al-Kadriyah and Barrister Ariyo in the Federal Capital Territory.
The arrest was announced in an emailed statement to The Trent signed by ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the Force spokesman, on Sunday, January 28, 2024.
The suspect, identified as 28-year-old Bello Mohammed from Zamfara State, was apprehended in Kaduna on January 20, 2024.
According to the statement, “The Divisional Police Officer, Tafa Division, acting on intelligence, raided one hotel in Tafa Area, Kaduna, where he arrested Bello, with the sum of #2.25 million, suspected to be proceeds of ransoms collected from kidnapped victims within the area.”
During interrogation, Mohammed reportedly confessed to being part of the gang responsible for kidnapping the family members of Barrister Ariyo in Bwari, FCT, on January 2, 2024.
Tragically, this included the murder of Nabeeha Al-Kadriyah, the daughter of the legal practitioner, on January 13, 2024, in a kidnappers’ camp in Kaduna State.
In what the police described as a “dramatic situation,” Mohammed attempted to bribe the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Tafa Division, SP Idris Ibrahim, with one million naira, an offer which the DPO rejected, carrying out his duty with diligence and integrity.
IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, Ph.D., NPM, commended the professionalism displayed in the case and has ordered the suspect to be handed over to the DFI-IRT in Abuja for thorough investigations.
This directive comes in the wake of Mohammed’s confession implicating five already neutralized bandits in Kaduna, led by one Mai Gemu (aka Godara), whose deadly camp has also been destroyed.
“The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, Ph.D., NPM, has ordered that the suspect, who also confessed to the involvement of the already five (5) neutralized bandits in Kaduna by the IRT, headed by one Mai Gemu (aka Godara), whose deadly camp has also been destroyed, be handed over to the DFI-IRT in Abuja for discreet investigations into the matter and arrest of all other culprits responsible for the dastardly act. The suspect is currently helping the police in their investigations,” the statement further.
“While commending the DPO Tafa, SP Idris Ibrahim, for the commitment and professionalism displayed in the case, he further assured that the Police would leave no stone unturned in decimating criminally minded individuals and bequeathing to Nigerians a more secure society for all and sundry in our dear country, Nigeria.”
