The Ogun State Police Command says it has rescued a three year old girl who was allegedly kidnapped in a church in Lagos State last Sunday during a church service while her parents were in the church.
The girl was said to have been seen in a church at Oke Sokori, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital by members of the community who later informed the Police detectives attached to Adigbe Division Abeokuta Ogun State.
The girl was rescued and handed over to the Juvenile and Women Centre of the Police for proper care.
According to a press statement by the Police Public Relations Officer, preliminary investigation revealed that the kidnappers had demanded for #300,000 (Three Hundred Thousand Naira) ransom from the girl’s parents and promised the parents that they would see her after the ransom has been dropped at a designated place.
The girl was seen with a note on which their Lagos pastor’s telephone number was written, possibly to locate her after the criminals’ transaction with her family.
The rescue of the girl terminated or truncated the operation of the criminals and no ransom was paid before the girl was rescued by the Police.
According to the command spokesperson, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Valentine Ntomchukwu, has directed the State Intelligence Bureau of the command to carry out thorough investigation into the matter as the mode of operation adopted by kidnappers in the state in recent times calls for concern.
The Commissioner of Police promised to discuss with his counterpart at the Lagos State Command on the need to tackle the recent development, and plan towards curbing such and arrest the criminals who engage themselves in the inhuman act.
The CP, Valentine Ntomchukwu, also appealed to parents and guardians and church authorities to always keep watch on the young ones in their churches and make adequate internal security arrangement in their churches to curb this menace of the new mode of operation of the kidnappers.