The police in Mowe have reportedly asked the family of Oluboboye Abiola, a pastor abducted from the Celestial Church of Christ Jehovah Shalom Parish in Ibafo, Ogun State, to pay N300,000 before they can apprehend his kidnappers.
On March 28, during a holy communion service at the church, Abiola and Seyi Oladapo, another senior pastor, were kidnapped by armed men wearing masks. FIJ reports that Oladapo managed to escape that night but was mistaken for a thief and beaten by local vigilantes before being taken to the Mowe police station, where he was recognized.
Akeem Ajisafe, a church member, recounted the incident to FIJ: “The kidnappers took them away, but only the senior pastor knows how he managed to escape. Vigilantes beat him, thinking he was a thief, and took him to the Mowe police station, where he was recognized.”
Ajisafe further explained that the community hired vigilantes and Amotekun guards to search the surrounding bushes. Days later, some people reported seeing the junior pastor unconscious with the kidnappers on a bike, but it was too late by the time they realized who he was.
Despite involving the police multiple times, the senior pastor has reported that officers kept asking for and collecting money. The kidnappers also made various demands, initially asking for N5 million and later requesting a cooler of rice and meat, bottled water, and N1 million.
Four months after the kidnapping, Salisu Aliyu, suspected to be involved in the abduction, took over Abiola’s WhatsApp and TikTok accounts, editing his image and moniker on WhatsApp and posting videos of himself on TikTok. When church members noticed, they sought police assistance to track the phone’s location, discovering it was in Oyo State.
However, instead of acting to arrest the kidnappers, the police demanded N300,000 from Abiola’s relatives to proceed.
FIJ attempted to contact Omolola Odutola, the Ogun State Police PRO, but received no response to calls or text messages.
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