27 students abducted by bandits from Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, Kaduna State, have been released after close to two months in captivity.

One of the persons who received the students confirmed the news to Newsfocusng on Wednesday.

He said the release was facilitated by the Sheikh Abubakar Gumi dialogue committee with support from former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The students were among the 37 abducted almost two months ago.

After payment of ransom by parents and school management, the bandits only released 10 of the victims.

Youths from Nnung Ikono Obio in Uruan Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State have destroyed the family house of Uduak Akpan, the suspect linked with the murder of a job seeker, Miss Iniubong Umoren.

Newsfocusng gathered that the youths, on Tuesday, used heavy pebbles to vandalise the building after setting the security house of the one storey building on fire.

Information gathered by our correspondent hinted that, the youths carted away all the properties in the building and took the father of the suspected killer to the police.

They explained that their action was predicated on the alleged complicity of Uduak Akpan in the murder of the 26-year-old Umoren, a graduate of philosophy from the University of Uyo.

“They broke the louvers and the glass doors with the help of heavy pebbles and sticks and carted away everything in the building,” a witness said.

Miss Umoren, who was said to have been lured on the pretext of a job offer, was abducted and sexually harassed before she was murdered.

Meanwhile, the President of the Youths in the area, Etubom Sunday Essien, who spoke with our correspondent expressed disappointment over the ‘action’ of one of their own.

He said “the action of man slaughter committed by the suspect, Uduak Akpan, is an offence which is not condoned in the community.

According to him , “there is nothing happening apart from the one you have already heard. It’s not good for the boy to kill his fellow human being.

“We don’t know that is what he has been doing, that is, man slaughter. That is what we have heard that he is doing. That is the reason we took this action,” he said.

Essien however exonerated the Chairman of the LGA, Mr. Iniobong Ekpenyong, saying he played the role of a Chief Security officer of the council by calling on the police to arrest the culprit.

“The allegation against the chairman is not true. He is not involved. He was the one that called in the police to arrest the boy. He is a good man, never a time, never a day we hear any bad thing concerning him” he stated.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of Uruan LGA, Mr Iniobong Ekpenyong, has expressed displeasure over the claims of the Police that, “The suspect confessed to have told his Local Government Chairman of his atrocity before escaping to Calabar and was never at any time handed over to the Police by anyone”.

He said the statement portrayed him as having concealed security information and is capable of smearing his name.

He stated that as the Chief Security Officer of Uruan local government area swung into action when he learnt of the actions of Uduak Akpan so as to facilitate his arrest.

He noted that his efforts paid off as the suspect who had earlier hinted that he was at a location in Oron local government area was later arrested by the DPO of Uruan.

The House of Representatives has ordered the Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, to urgently take over the investigation of the kidnapping, sexual, physical assault and killing of Miss Iniubong Ephraim Umoren, and ensure prosecution of the perpetrators of the heinous crime.

The House, condemned in strong terms, the act of sexual assault and gruesome murder of late Miss Umoren, described the act as barbaric, inhuman and despicable.

The lawmakers also ordered the IGP to ensure the protection of her family members from harassment, intimidation and harm.

It further mandated its standing Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development to follow up with the investigation and prosecution, and ensure compliance — just as it expects it to report back for further legislative actions.

The resolutions followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance, sponsored by Hon. Unyime Idem.

Moving the motion, Idem recalled that on April 30, 2021, the Anti-kidnapping squad of the Akwa Ibom State Command of the Nigeria Police Force received a criminal report on the disappearance of Miss Iniubong Ephraim Umoren who left her house on the fateful day in search of employment.

He noted that the late Umoren was a graduate of the University of Uyo in Akwa Ibom State, who was without employment since her graduation from the University.

“Available information has it that she received a phone call from the assailant who pretentiously called her and invited her to a false interview of an advertised job.

“The innocent Miss Umoren was later found dead by the police after an official report and with the help of a wide reportage of her disappearance and information of the false interview on social media platforms, and her body was further exhumed where it was buried in a shallow grave by her assailant”, he said.

He, however, expressed concern that the family members of the deceased have reportedly raised an alarm of receiving strange phone calls and threats of various degrees and have been asked to withdraw the case.

”It has been reported that the assailant upon his arrest by the police and subsequent voluntary confession boasted that he is well connected and will be released from the Police custody scot-free in a matter of days. The Nigeria Police Force has been reporting a surging high record in rape and gender violation across the country.

“Unfortunately, a very scary number of cases have been reported daily with thousands unreported. These acts are gross violation of human rights to dignity, life and sexuality,” he added.

Idem advised that the public outrage on account of rape and other violent crimes against women and the girl child should not go unpunished as a deterrent for the perpetrators and others nursing the thought to forestall future occurrence.

Adopting the motion, the lawmakers observed a minute silence in honour of the deceased and other victims of this nefarious act.

Abductors of the students and a staff of Greenfield University, Kasarami, Kaduna have released one out of the remaining 17 students in their custody.

Recall that the bandits leader, Sani Idris Jalingo, had on Monday in an interview with Voice of America (VOA) Hausa confirmed that 17 students, including 15 females and a two males, were remaining in their custody after killing five penultimate week.

Jalingo threatened the 17 students would be killed if N100 million and 10 Honda brand motorcycles, popularly known as Boko Haram, were not delivered to his gang as ransom by the end of Tuesday 4th May.

Mother of the freed student, Mrs. Lauritta Attahiru confirmed her son’s release to Channels Television.

Mrs. Attahiru, who refused to give details of how her son was released or whether ransom was paid, simply said her son had been released.

Although police and government authorities were yet to confirm the development, our correspondent gathered from sources that a ransom of N20 million was paid for the student’s release.

Some of the parents also confirmed the student was released after his mother, who is the wife of a retired Army officer, negotiated and paid ransom to the bandits privately.

The parents further confirmed the bandits had earlier negotiated with them individually, asking each of them to pay as high as N20 million before they eventually demanded a bulk of N100 million and ten motorcycles on Monday, May 3.

Unknown gunmen have on Tuesday abducted the Chairman of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in Kogi state, Wakili Damina.

The state Secretary of MACBAN, Adamu Abubakar, said Damina was abducted on April 30 by some armed men dressed in army camouflage.

He , however, noted that witnesses said the abductors, numbering about eight, came in a white bus around 12 noon to forcefully take away the chairman from his house at Chikara village, Kogi Local Government Area.

Abubakar said he was informed of the incident about an hour later by the younger brother of Damina, who claimed he witnessed the incident.

The secretary said he immediately called the phone number of the missing chairman, but it rang out.

He said Damina’s mobile telephone was switched off when he celled about an hour later.

He said the “Since then, his lines have not been reachable and all efforts to know his whereabouts have proved abortive.”

He said he and some members of the association visited the Nigeria Police Force headquarters, Abuja, to know if Damina was in their custody but they said no.

He said a search party set up by MACBAN had visited other places, including abattoirs in and around Abuja but there no success.

Meanwhile, the state Commissioner of Police, Ede Ayuba, confirmed the incident.

He said the police had yet to locate the whereabouts of the chairman.