Gunmen Abduct School Principal, Escape With His New SUV

AMILOADED MEDIA HUB NEWS UPDATE

Armed men during the weekend kidnapped one Monday Ekoriko, the Principal of Madonna Community Secondary School (MCSS) in Oruk Anam Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.

The incident happened at the victim’s residence at Udianga Enem in Etim Ekpo Local Council of the state.

Narrating the incident to journalists on Sunday, the wife of the victim, Mrs Menim Ekoriko, said the armed youths stormed their family compound at about 7:30pm on Saturday, overpowered her husband, bundled him into his new Lexus SUV and sped off.

According to her, “I was in the toilet located in the nearby bush in the compound when they arrived and took over strategic places in the compound, while others invaded the house, where they fished him out and started beating him when he showed resistance. The operation lasted for about two hours.”

The youths’ leader of the village, Comrade Udeme John, expressed worry that a Kidnapping operation could last that long without response from the Police checkpoint at the nearby Edem Akai village, few metres away from the scene of the incident.

“I don’t know why such an incident should happen and the Police standing guard at the nearby Edem Akai-Etim Ekpo-Iwukem -Abak highway. And, even my people could not run down and inform me so we could rally everyone to block the roads with logs of woods to prevent them from taking the teacher away,” he noted.

The eldest son, Menyene Ekoriko, a student at the Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic (AkwaPoly) at Ikot Osurua, in Ikot Ekpene LGA, said “when I learnt that my father has been kidnapped, I rushed down to the village and immediately reported the matter to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at Utu Etim Ekpo, who led some of his men to this compound this morning.

“They took some information from my mother and myself as well as inspected the scene and gave assurances that the culprits would be apprehended,” he said.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Odiko Macdon, confirmed the incident, saying “we are aware of the incident, the Commissioner of Police (CP), Mr. Olatoye Durosinmi, has condemned the incident and is personally coordinating the Police Anti-Kidnapping Squad, and they have gone after the kidnappers.”