Operatives of the Amotekun Corps in Ondo have arrested two teenage girls for allegedly feigning being kidnapped. 

Adetunji Adeleye, the state commander of the corps, revealed the teenagers’ arrest (name withheld) to reporters on Monday while parading over 20 suspects in Akure. 

He disclosed that the girls (ages 13 and 15) hid from their mother after faking self-abduction. 

“The two (girls) hid themselves inside and began to call that they were kidnapped while demanding a ransom of N100,000 from their parents,” the Amotekun boss said.

The commander said the girls also threatened the town’s monarch to pay the ransom within 24 hours or they would kill the abductees in their custody.

According to him, the teenagers were nabbed through a joint operation with the State Security Service (SSS) operatives after tracking the telephone line being used to make calls for their demand.

One of the girls said they spent a night in their grandmother’s place and left there around 6:00 a.m. after they had left the house.

She confessed that they faked their kidnap following their mother’s attitude towards them.

“We left the house because my mother used to behave to us as if she’s not the one that gave birth to me, and we decided to collect money from her,” she added. 

Aside from the teenagers, no fewer than 26 other suspects were arrested by the Amotekun Corps for different crimes.

Among them were suspects supplying food to kidnappers and hostage takers, who allegedly raped their victims for three consecutive days while hiding in the Ilaje Local Government Area of the state.

Mr Adeleye disclosed that some suspects were arrested during intense joint raiding of the forests in Owo, Ifon and Akoko to dislodge kidnappers hiding in the forests.

He disclosed that many ATM cards were found in the possession of some of the suspects, and they could not explain how they came about them.

According to him, the ATM cards were suspected to belong to the victims they kidnapped.

However, he called on the public to beware of people (kidnappers) who pretend to be blowing balloons on motorbikes or in a commercial vehicle, particularly taxis. He added that they tactically blow some tranquilising substance that makes their victims fall asleep and lose their memories.