The armed bandits who kidnapped members of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Oke-Igan, in Eruku, Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State, have reportedly demanded a staggering ₦100 million ransom per victim, bringing the total demand to ₦3 billion.
According to information obtained by The PUNCH, the abductors contacted families of the victims and delivered the shocking demand, leaving relatives traumatized and the entire community in fear.
The worshippers were abducted during a church programme, a development that has further heightened tensions in the already insecure border communities between Kwara and Kogi States.
Local sources say the kidnappers have refused to negotiate downward and are issuing threats to harm the captives if their demands are not met. Families, many of whom are ordinary rural dwellers, have been thrown into despair as they struggle to raise even a fraction of the amount.
Community leaders have appealed to the Kwara State Government, security agencies, and the Federal Government to intervene urgently to prevent loss of lives, describing the ransom demand as “unrealistic, wicked, and intended to terrorize the entire region.”
Security operatives are said to be tracking the group, though no official statement has yet been issued on rescue operations. Though some claim to have apprehended some of the terrorist, but this is sketchy.
The incident adds to the growing wave of kidnappings across the country, with bandits increasingly targeting worship centres and rural communities where security presence is minimal.
