Gunmen Abduct Delta LG Chairman in Fresh Midnight Attack

Gunmen have abducted the Chairman of Sapele Local Government Area in Delta State, Chief Bright Abeke, in an attack that threw the community into panic.

The incident reportedly happened less than 24 hours after suspected gunmen issued threats of violence in the area, heightening concerns over rising insecurity.

Eyewitnesses said the council chairman was kidnapped at about 7pm on Friday at a hotel along Owumi Road in Sapele, while the attackers fired shots into the air.

The assailants, said to be about 15 in number, were said to have arrived in a Range Rover SUV and two other vehicles, shooting sporadically to scare away residents and hotel guests.

They reportedly went straight for their target and whisked him away to an unknown destination.

A member of a local vigilante group, identified simply as Ufuoma, was also shot during the attack and rushed to a nearby hospital. His condition was yet to be confirmed as of press time.

Security operatives have since cordoned off major entry and exit points in Sapele as efforts continue to rescue the abducted chairman and track down the attackers.

The Police Public Relations Officer of the Delta State Command, SP Bright Edafe, confirmed the incident.

“Confirmed. The CP has ordered that the command’s special anti-kidnapping unit deploy their arsenals to ensure that he is rescued unhurt and the suspects arrested,” he said in a WhatsApp message.