I feigned my kidnap to get money from my uncle ―19-yr-old girl

A 19-year-old girl, Dorcas Adilewa and one other person have been arrested by the police in Lagos State for allegedly feigning her kidnap in order to extort money from her family.

The teenager claimed that she feigned her kidnap to get money from his uncle for her to further her education and to help her mother repay a loan that she obtained.

Dorcas and her accomplice, 20-year-old Ifeoluwa Ogunbanjo had reportedly planned the fake kidnap, after she lied to her mother that she was going to see a friend in Ogun State, only to call her father later that she had been kidnapped.

The state police boss, Imohimi Edgal, while parading the suspect before newsmen on Monday afternoon said “On the 12/07/2018 at about 1700hrs, one Adilewa Taiwo of No.3, Kosumi Lane, Bello-Ketu, Lagos reported at Ketu police station that on the same date at about 1500hrs, he was at Odogbolu in Ogun State attending a burial rite when he received a call from phone number 09057432362 telling him that, his daughter, Dorcas Adilewa ‘f’ 19 years was being held hostage by them and that if he does not want her killed, he should pay a ransom of the sum of Six Hundred Thousand Naira (N600,000.00) to secure her release. The case was immediately transferred to the Anti-Kidnapping Section, SCIID, Panti for discreet investigation.

The police boss added that “Investigation into the case was immediately commenced and the above phone number that was used by the suspects was geo-located to Ijebu-Igbo area of Ogun State. The O/C Anti-Kidnapping led his operatives to Ijebu-Igbo on 12/07/2018 at about 2200hrs and combed the area in search of the supposed victim till the following morning of 13/07/2018. While the search was ongoing at Ijebu-Igbo, the location of the supposed kidnappers changed on the morning of 13/07/2018 to Ikotun in Lagos and the search party had to move from Ijebu-Igbo to Ikotun in Lagos to rescue the victim.”

“When the fake kidnappers realized that the Police were closing in on them, the supposed victim decided to call the complainant to inform him that she has been released after he had deposited the sum of Eight thousand (N8,000.00) naira in her bank account number,” the police boss also stated.

CP Edgal added that, “When the said Dorcas Adilewa was being debriefed upon her release, she confessed by revealing that, she actually planned with her friend, one Ifeoluwa Ogunbanjo who provided her with accommodation at No. 174, Adeboye road, Okesopin, Ijebu Igbo in Ogun State to hide and the phone that they used in demanding for the ransom of Six Hundred Thousand Naira (N600,000.00). Her reason was to extort money from her father.”

Dorcas told TribuneOnline that, “I went to Ifeoluwa’s place and I had borrowed money from my mum to transport myself there. It was because of the situation in my family that led me to plot my own kidnap. My father has a liver problem and My mum had collected a loan from corporative which she has been finding difficult to repay.”

The suspect also added that “My aunt who had always come to the rescue of my family had died recently. She was the person seeing me through school. I had written JAMB to enable me to further my education and also needed money to pursue my admission. Even where I was working with Bet Naija, I was owed a three-month salary.”

“I had called my uncle to seek for financial help which he turned down. This was why I devised the strategy to pretend I had been kidnapped to help raise money to help my mother repay her loan. I had called my friend that I was coming. The plan was to stay at her place, call my father that I was kidnapped and request for N600,000 as ransom to help mum repay her loan. “she also said

On how she expected the father to get the money, the suspect said, “I knew if my uncle heard I was kidnapped, he will definitely raise the money for the ransom. But unfortunately, I was arrested.”

The alleged accomplice, Ifeoluwa, however, denied being part of the fake kidnap operation, when she said, “Dorcas called me on Thursday, July 12th to say she was at my bus top at Ijebu-Igbo in Ogun State. I asked why she didn’t call me before coming and she then told me she was kidnapped and taken to Akure and that she had escaped and decided to come to my place to recuperate”.

She added that “When my mother heard her story, she insisted Dorcas passed the night and continued her journey the next day. That night, Dorcas requested for my phone which I gave her to make a call. She went outside to make the call and when she returned the phone, she had deleted all the dialled calls.”

“I didn’t know she had called her Father saying she was kidnapped and demanding for ransom. She used a day to carry out the whole act. I have only known her for six months from the church and didn’t know she was capable of such. She just implicated me.” she also claimed.