A 13-year-old girl reported missing on June 5, 2025, while running an errand for her mother in the Umuebule community, Etche Local Government Area of Rivers State, has been successfully rescued from her captors. The main suspect, identified as 36-year-old Mr. Chizoba Andrew Obi, has been taken into custody, and several items have been recovered from the scene.
According to reports, the victim’s mother received ransom demands totaling two million naira (N2,000,000) through phone calls, threatening the life of her daughter if the money was not paid. This information was disclosed in a statement released to TPCN on Thursday, June 12, 2025, by the Police Public Relations Officer, Grace Iringe-Koko.
She stated, “On June 7, 2025, at about 0930hrs, the Rivers State Police Command received credible intelligence regarding a 13-year-old girl who went missing on June 5, 2025, at about 1530hrs, while running an errand for her mother in Umuebule community, Etche Local Government Area.
“The victim’s mother subsequently received ransom demands of Two Million Naira (N2,000,000) via phone calls threatening that the daughter would be killed if the demand was not met. “Operatives from the C4i Intelligence unit promptly swung into action, arresting a 24-year-old female suspect from Igbo-Etche, suspected to be the subscriber of the SIM cards linked to the ransom demands. The suspect had allegedly claimed that her phone was stolen on June 5, 2025.”
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“Further investigation on June 10, 2025, at about 1600hrs culminated in the arrest of the principal suspect, Chizoba Andrew Obi, a 36-year-old male suspect, and the kidnapped victim was rescued unhurt in a fenced forest at Umuechem Community, Etche Local Government Area,” Iringe-Koko noted that recovered items included a homemade pistol and one live cartridge.
According to her, “during interrogation, the suspect confessed to being a serial kidnapping kingpin operating with a four-man gang. “As Police operatives were led by the suspect to the forest to recover their operational weapons, the gang members, on sighting the Police Operatives, opened fire, prompting a shootout between the Police and kidnappers. The arrested suspect attempted to flee but was caught in the crossfire and was neutralized, sustaining bullet wounds, while other members of the gang escaped with varying degrees of gunshot wounds.
He was rushed to the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) for medical treatment, but was pronounced dead by the Medical Doctor on duty. The corpse of the deceased suspect has been deposited at the mortuary for autopsy. “The victim was debriefed and has been reunited with her family. “Investigation is ongoing, with efforts underway to apprehend other members of the syndicate and recover their operational weapons.”
Additionally, Commissioner of Police Olugbenga A. Adepoju praised the officers for their courage and reaffirmed the command’s dedication to ensuring the safety and security of all residents. He also emphasized that efforts will continue to bring all crime perpetrators to justice in the state, urging the public to remain vigilant and promptly report any suspicious individuals with gunshot wounds to the nearest police station or other security agencies.
