The abduction of Mr Chinedu Nwachukwu in Port Harcourt city metropolis on his birthday being Sunday has continued to generate reactions as the security issues within south East and Rivers State gets messier day after day.

It was gathered that the incident occurred at about 7:15pm along Chuba-Ozuoba road when some faceless armed men apprehended Mr Chinedu an Architect and renown husband to the gallant police officer whose life has been threatened over the years after leading an operation to raid a group of armed robbery gang in Abia State.

According to an eye witness who pleaded anonymity said the “9th, March 2025 remains one of the horrible day in his life as the level of insecurity in South-East and South-South went worst.”

Speaking to news men, he expressed dissatisfaction over the tension created by men of the underworld in the region.

Another eyewitness Mrs Julia said, she was dumbfounded how the architect was abducted on his birthday.

According to her, “I saw Mr Chinedu with two people I believed to be his friends or clients when they were going to the site this morning along Chuba-Ozuoba road because, I know him as an Architect.

“He had handled a project for someone I know and I have seen him on site when I come around to sell food.”

Narrating further, she said “It was around 7:15pm, I was coming back from market, and saw him again in same area but he was walking alone when returning from site.

“We exchanged pleasantries when he told me today is his birthday, which I congratulated him then we departed. Not few distance from me, a blue Sienna car, I never notice just drove down towards him and three masked men with arms came down from the car and dragged him into the car while they drove off speedily before crowd could gather.

She said the only thing she could hear them saying was from a distance was “where is your wife?”

In the meantime, the police are yet to react or make any statement as of the time of filing this report although, earlier police report shows that the wife to the abducted husband of the female Police Officer, Mrs Blessing Gyabensawa has been on the news, crying over threat to her life and that of her family members by some faceless gang.

Edo State Government has demolished a house suspected to be Kidnappers’ hideout in Uromi, inna bid to ensure public safety in Senator Monday Okpebholo ‘s administration.

Leading the demolition exercise in Illeh (Esan West LGA) and Uromi (Esan North East LGA), the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, Mr. Akhere Paul, emphasized that the action aligns with the state’s anti-kidnapping law.

The SA to the governor said the new administration has zero tolerance for properties used as criminal hideouts and urged landlords to properly vet tenants before renting out their properties.

“This house was used to keep kidnapped victims, and dangerous weapons were recovered here. The new law, signed by Governor Monday Okpebholo, mandates the demolition of any property used for such criminal activities,” Mr. Akhere stated.

The Commander of the Special Task Force, SP Michael Anetor, affirmed that the crackdown will continue and called on residents to report suspicious activities to security agencies.

Meanwhile, two arrested suspects, Utubor Uchenna and Felix Ebama, admitted to using the demolished properties as hideouts. They confessed to participating in high-profile kidnappings, including a recent case where they collected a ₦10 million ransom.

The Edo State Government has pledged to sustain the fight against kidnapping, ensuring that criminal elements are flushed out to make the state safer for residents

There was serious protest in Jos, capital of Plateau State on Sunday on allegations that some truck drivers transporting goods from the northern parts of the country to the South Eastern parts were mowed by operatives of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, a proscribed organization controlled by the embattled leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

The protest in Jos was carried by members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, condemning the killing of drivers from the northern part of the country while carrying out their duties in the South East region.

Angry drivers were seen carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Enough is enough,” “End the carnage, ensure smooth passage of northern truck drivers,” and “We are united against violence, protect all drivers regardless of origin.”

The State Coordinator of Heavy Trucks, Plateau State Council, Janedu Ahamad Zaki condemned the senseless killing of innocent drivers of heavy trucks describing IPOB’s action as “senseless and barbaric”, calling on the Federal Government to protect drivers and their properties in the South East.

“For the past eight years, truck drivers from northern Nigeria have been consistently targeted, killed, and had their trucks destroyed or burnt while transporting goods to the South-East. We are still trying to understand what offense we have committed to deserve this kind of barbaric killing,” he said.

According to him, 50 drivers have been killed, while hundreds of trucks carrying goods to the region were set ablaze or looted.

“Between January and December 2024 alone, in communities such as Ihube, Okigwe, and Isuochi in Imo State, more than 20 drivers were brutally killed, and their trucks either burned or damaged. Some bodies were recovered, while others remain missing,” he claimed.

Zaki named four truck drivers who were ambushed and killed by IPOB operatives on January 28, 2025 as Haruna Jibril, Bala Muhammad, Dalladi Jafaru, and Auwal Muhammad — were ambushed between Lokpanta in Imo State and Umuahia in Abia State while transporting tomatoes to Port Harcourt. According to him, all four were killed, and their trucks were emptied by the assailants.

“The perpetrators, after unloading the tomatoes, filmed the empty truck and sent the videos to us to confirm that they had killed the victims. When we called them to release the bodies, they told us to forget about them,” he recounted.