*Command debunks alleged kidnapping of FRSC officer and safety concerns on Enugu/Opi/Nsukka road
Operatives of the Enugu State Police Command attached to Unity Division, have foiled a suspected kidnapping attempt on October 28, 2024, around 7:10 p.m., at the Neke-Uno axis of the Enugu/Opi/Nsukka Road.
The suspects, according to the Police, after intense gun duel, fled with gunshot wounds, abandoning one AK-47 rifle, two magazines containing a total of twenty-two (22) rounds, and a chain of thirty-nine (39) live ammunition.
Further operations to hunt down the fleeing suspects the same night, paved the way for a lecturer of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (names withheld), reportedly kidnapped on October 26, 2024, to escape from his abductors’ custody.
The Command, however, refuted viral reports alleging the kidnapping of a Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officer travelling from Benue State along same route, clarifying that no such incident has been recorded anywhere in Enugu State.
Also, claims suggesting that the Enugu/Opi/Nsukka Road is unsafe for travellers, it stated, are unfounded, saying the product of scaremongering, should be disregarded.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, CP Kanayo Uzuegbu, has ordered the deployment of additional personnel and resources to bolster both overt and covert police operations along the Enugu/Opi/Nsukka Road, reassuring the public of security and safety on the road and across the State.
However, in spite of police assurances, residents of Enugu have company notified to express disappointment on the number of robberies and kidnappings along the Opi- Ugwogo road, Ikem-Ugwogo road, Opi-Umulumgbe-9th Mile old road, Opi-Ogbede-Abor/Ebe-9th Mile federal highway and Affa-Eke road
They stated that although the Commissioner of Police is at liberty to make statements, the fact remains that the activities of kidnappers and armed robbers along those roads rather than abate, are on the rise and occur almost at the same spot everytime there is an incident, fuelling speculations of connivance of the law enforcement agencies.
