Kidnappers who abducted Oba David Oyewumi, the Obadu of Ilemeso Ekiti, have demanded N20 million ransom to secure his release.
Oyewumi was abducted by the gunmen who invaded the palace in Ilemeso Ekiti in Oye LGA of Ekiti state at 9.00 p.m. on April 15.
A family source, who did not want his name published, told newsmen in Ado-Ekiti on Monday that the abductors contacted the family late on Saturday and demanded the ransom.
“We have been contacted by those who took Kabiyesi. They called us around 7.03 p.m. on Saturday and demanded that we pay N20 million for the king to be released.
“We are really worried by this demand, but the family is not taking anything to chance, as we are taking further steps to ensure that Kabiyesi is released alive as soon as possible.”
Reacting, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, ASP Sunday Abutu, said the police was not aware of the ransom demanded.
Abutu, however, said that the police and other security agencies were making frantic efforts to rescue the Oba from captivity safe.
“We are taking all security measures to ensure that we rescue the Oba. We are not resting at all.
“We are working with other sister agencies in this regard and also working on intelligence we have at our disposal.
“The police want to work more to prevent this kind of crime and we are relying on information from the members of the public.
“We work more on information we find to be veracious,” the PPRO said.
The police spokesman appealed to members of the public to help with valuable information on the matter.
“We assure them that the police will protect the identities of such informants,” Abutu said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the attack on the Oba was the second of such in the state within three weeks.
Another Oba had earlier been attacked while on transit at 7.00 p.m. and his official car was riddled with bullets by gunmen believed to be kidnappers.
He was, however, lucky to escape being kidnapped, but sustained gunshot wounds on the stomach and other parts of the body.