54-Year-Old Woman In Police Net For Faking Own Kidnap, Demanding ?15m Ransom From Younger Brother
LAGOS NOVEMBER 10TH (URHOBOTODAY)-The Delta State Police Command has arrested a 54-year-old woman for allegedly staging her own kidnap and demanding a ransom of ?15million from her younger brother in an attempt to extort money from her family.
The woman, identified as Umadi, reportedly claimed that she was abducted by unknown gunmen while on her way to purchase medicine and subsequently contacted her younger brother, informing him that her purported kidnappers were demanding ?15 million for her release.
According to the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe, the incident was reported on October 23, 2026, at the Ogwuash-Uku Police Division as a suspected kidnapping.
Edafe disclosed that following the report, the Commissioner of Police directed operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit, Ubuluku, to investigate the case and ensure the woman’s rescue.
However, an intelligence-led investigation by the operatives uncovered that the alleged abduction was fabricated by the woman herself to extort money from her younger brother.
Speaking in a video released by the police, Edafe expressed shock that a woman in her 50s would engage in self-kidnapping, noting that previous cases of staged abductions known to the command had largely involved teenagers and young people.
“In the past, we have heard of cases of self-kidnap, fake kidnap that was done by underage or, let me say, teenagers 15, 16, 17 to 20, but we have never had a case that involved a 54-year-old elderly woman, Edafe said.
“It is quite unfortunate that she faked her own kidnap because she wanted to extort her younger brother a sum of ?15 million.”
During her interrogation, the suspect admitted that she arranged the fake abduction and contacted her younger brother to inform him that she had been kidnapped.
When Edafe asked her how much ransom she demanded, the woman responded that she requested ?15 million.
She also admitted telling her brother that the supposed kidnappers would kill her if the money was not paid.
Asked why she decided to put her family member through such an ordeal despite admitting that the brother had not treated her badly, the suspect struggled to provide a convincing explanation.
The police spokesperson further disclosed that the woman claimed she had been held captive for 12 days after staging the abduction on October 23.
Edafe, however, said investigations revealed that the incident was a calculated attempt to extort her younger brother, who had initially believed that she was genuinely in the hands of kidnappers.
He commended the brother for reporting the incident to the police, stressing the importance of promptly alerting security agencies whenever relatives receive kidnapping threats or ransom demands.
The police spokesperson also disclosed that the suspect might not have acted alone, revealing that investigators had identified some individuals allegedly involved in the conspiracy and were already tracking them for possible arrest.
“Some of the people she conspired with were seen on their trail because obviously she didn’t do it alone, and we are definitely going to arrest them,” Edafe said.
The Delta Police Command said it would continue its investigation into the incident and pursue other suspected accomplices.
The arrest comes amid growing incidents of kidnapping and ransom-related crimes across Nigeria, with the police warning against criminal schemes that exploit families’ fears and desperation to raise money for the supposed release of loved ones.
SaharaReporters
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