Okon Bassey in Uyo
Ten years after arrest, an Akwa Ibom State High Court has sentenced a Police Corporal, Mbazigwe Chinedu Friday, and a bus conductor, Isaac Eddy Ndeesor, to death by hanging for kidnapping Elder Akara Johnson Mendie, the vice principal of Community Secondary School, Nkek in Ukanafun Local Government Area of the state.
The judgment was delivered by Justice Nsemeke Daniel, who found the convicted guilty on charges of conspiracy, kidnapping, and unlawful possession of firearms.
The victim was abducted on July 5, 2015, at about 3:30 p.m., while returning from the church with his wife and other family members on Urua Akpan Udosen/Ikot Unah Road in Ukanafun.
The victim’s wife recounted that four armed men driving in a Toyota Camry blocked their vehicle, forcefully took her husband, and sped off to an unknown destination.
She added that the assailants also seized her handbag containing important documents, including a will, a Power of Attorney, reading glasses, and a GSM phone.
The victim told the court he was blindfolded and taken to an unknown location.
According to his testimony, the kidnappers told him that one of his brothers had paid them N50 million to eliminate him, but offered to spare his life if he could produce N25 million.
On July 10, 2015, a ransom of N200,000 was eventually paid through the victim’s younger sister, and he was released and dropped off in Bori, Rivers State, from where he reported to Bori Police Station.
The Divisional Police Officer arranged transportation that conveyed him back to his community in Ukanafun.
The victim’s sister, who resides in Bayelsa State, narrated the tense negotiations that preceded the release.
She said the kidnappers initially directed her to deliver the ransom in Bayelsa State, but kept changing the meeting points: from Bayelsa to Rumuokoro, then to a trailer park in Ogoni, and finally a roundabout in Ikwerre.
At the final location, three masked men on a motorcycle collected the ransom and fled, and the brother was released the following day.
Mbazigwe Chinedu Friday, 41, a native of Umucha in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area of Abia State, was at the time, a Police Corporal attached to Mopol 57, Ukana, Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
Friday, who joined the Nigeria Police Force in January 2007, admitted in his confessional statement to participating in the abduction.
He told the police that on the day of the incident, he was contacted by one Felix (surname unknown), whom he had known from Mopol 56 in Ogoni.
Felix allegedly introduced another person known as ‘Different Man’, who claimed that an unnamed ‘honourable’ person wanted the victim kidnapped over allegations that the victim had killed his friend.
Friday admitted he drove his Toyota Camry and blocked the victim’s vehicle, adding that Felix and Isaac forcefully removed the victim and placed him inside his car.
When the Camry developed a fault, he boarded public transport to Uyo, retrieved his Volkswagen Golf, and returned to continue the operation, transporting the victim to a bush in Ogoni, Rivers State.
He acknowledged that the weapon used was not an official Police firearm and that his accomplices were not police officers.
Friday further admitted knowing that his actions amounted to kidnapping.
Following Isaac’s arrest by the Department of State Services (DSS), he led security operatives to Friday.
During a search of his residence, authorities recovered one locally made revolver pistol, three rounds of 9mm live ammunition, five rounds of AK-47 ammunition, one empty AK-47 magazine, one wrap of Indian hemp, CCTV equipment, multiple GSM phones, ATM cards, a SIM pack,s and car accessories.
The bus conductor, Ndeesor, a native of Ogoni in Rivers State, was about 28 years old at the time of the offence and resided in Ahoada, Rivers State.
He admitted that they waited near the victim’s residence in Ukanafun after being told the victim would return from church.
The convict confirmed that Friday used his vehicle to block the victim’s car and that they abducted him and transported him to a bush in Ogoni.
Ndeesor also admitted to stealing the victim’s phone and using it, a move that ultimately led to his arrest after security agencies tracked the device.
Delivering his judgment, Hon. Justice Nsemeke Daniel criticized the protracted trial, noting that the case, filed in 2016, was only concluded in 2026, a 10-year delay he described as unacceptable.
The Judge dismissed the first defendant’s claims of a frame-up, stating that his explanations were inconsistent and did not affect the substance of the charges.
“How can a police officer lead a gang of kidnappers to abduct a poor victim returning from church with his wife and family?” the Judge queried.
Justice Daniel held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The court convicted both defendants of conspiracy, kidnapping, and unlawful possession of a firearm.
Justice Daniel declared, “You shall be hanged by the neck until you are dead. May God have mercy on you!”
