Police, DSS Differ Again On Falae’s Kidnappers…As DSS Parades 2 Suspects

Barely 24 hours after the police claimed it has arrested six members of the gang that abducted elder statesman and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae in his farm,Akure, Ondo state, the DSS today paraded another set of two suspects accused of carrying out the kidnap.

The latest development brings to the fore again the inter-agency rivalry between the police and DSS which had in the time past seen the two law enforcement agencies parading different sets of suspects with different accounts for the same incident. Before now, the two had paraded two sets of suspects in the murder of a former Private Secretary to Edo state governor, Adams Oshiomhole.

Babawuro Kato, one of the persons paraded by DSS today disclosed that the plan to kidnap Falae was hatched at a marriage ceremony in Kwara state just for the sole purpose of raising money for the Salah celebration.

Speaking after the Department of Security Services (DSS) paraded the two suspects of the kidnap, the 26 year old Fulani nomad, admitted that apart from being the one who informed the gang about seeing Falae’s Hilux vehicle each time he takes food to his uncle’s labourers, he equally bought food for the kidnappers and Falae on two instances.

He however, lamented that he did not get a dime from the N5 million ransom paid to the kidnappers as one of them, he identified as Dojijo fled with the money after the second paraded suspect, Abdullahi Usman confirmed riding with them on his motorcycle.

His words: “We were about three persons at the initial stage of the planning. We met at Umana, Kwara State, during a marriage ceremony. On my way back, I had seen this my friend, Abdullahi, who asked me how we could raise money for Salah.

“I told him about one person who has knowledge of kidnapping for ransom, we call Dojijo but I have never met him one on one and I told him I know one man in the farm who has a Hilux vehicle he usually bring to farm.

“He asked me how I knew him and I told him that though I have never set my eyes on him, I usually see him each time my uncle sends me to the labourers working for him. He told me that they will invite me anytime they are ready for the operation. That was all I know about the kidnap.

“However, about four days later, they invited me to come and buy food for them but I told them that I don’t have money with me but I will come. I traced the route with my motorcycle. I met about two of them in the bush including Abdullahi.

“They gave me N2500 to buy food for them. They asked Baba what he wanted to eat and he told them coke with bread. It was among the things I bought for them. Then some days later, they called me to come and buy food again, but after that day, I would call them but their numbers were not going again.

“Few days later, they called me that they have brought the money paid in Abuja, but they also told me that one of them have bolted away with the money. They promised to see me when they come to Owo and when we met, they confirmed that they could not see him again after collecting the money.

“When the money could not come, I had to sell one of my cows to celebrate Salah. I dropped N20,000 for my mum and left with N40,000 to Millennium Park in Abuja to enjoy myself. I still saw Abduallahi there and asked if they had seen but he told me they have not seen him.” Speaking earlier, DSS new spokesperson, Abdullahi Garba, dismissed the insinuation linking ethnic connotation to the kidnapping, urging: “Nigerians to live in peace with one another and shun attempts by mischief makers to give this unfortunate incident an ethnic or any other coloration to cause disaffection among the populace.

“To this effect, this Service wishes to appeal to all Nigerians to be law abiding and responsible in their commentary on sensitive issues affecting national security. The Service will not hesitate to deal decisively with anybody, no matter how highly placed, in accordance with the law as long as such a person(s) failed to be a respecter of the law or peacefully coexist among the good citizens of this great nation.”