The 45-year-old woman arrested by the Edo State Police Command for allegedly faking her own kidnapping, Oluchi Ugbowan, has spoken publicly, insisting she was not abducted but voluntarily staged the incident.

Ugbowan was arrested alongside three others at a hotel in the Ikpoba Hills area of Edo State days after her family reported that she had been kidnapped and that a ransom of 50 million was demanded.

The police had also paraded the suspects in a video shared on social media by the command’s spokesperson, CSP Eno Ikoedem on Tuesday.

Speaking in the video, Ugbowan admitted that the entire incident was a planned simulation allegedly carried out to raise money to offset debts.

She said, “I was not kidnapped, but I went into hiding. Two days later, I called him (Israel Ability) again. He said the matter had escalated and asked how much they (my family) had in hand. They said N3.5 million. I said, ‘Let’s manage it.’ They said they wanted to add to the money, but it was reduced to N20 million.”

According to her, the arrangement later escalated into a staged “kidnapping drama” intended to pressure her family into raising funds.

“I told him (Ability) it was too much. If we had N5 million, we would be fine. I could pay off the debt because we had agreed on one week. We acted it out as a drama. So I approached these children (Ability and his younger brother). He came with his younger brother. I told them I wanted to stage a drama that would look like a kidnapping,” she added.

Ugbowan further disclosed that she suggested using props, including a cutlass and later a gun, to make the staged abduction appear more convincing in a video meant for her family.

“I told them to put the cutlass on my neck and said, ‘Say your last prayer.’ So when we were discussing it, the children said their father had a gun, but the father was not around. I asked if there were any bullets, but they said there were none. I said, ‘If you have a gun, go and bring it. It’s better.’

"So they went inside and brought the gun. I told them to put it on my neck and said, ‘Say your last prayer.’ It was inside the room that we acted it out. I was the one who tied my hands. My mindset was that if they saw stronger evidence, they would come up with a better negotiation,” she said.

She, however, expressed regret over her actions, saying financial pressure pushed her into the scheme.

“That was not my intention. It was the debt that was weighing heavily on me. They can ask people, even LAPO came to my place that day (the day I went missing), and that was what motivated me. I said, ‘Let me just do this and see how much I will get.,” she said.

Also speaking, one of the suspects, Israel Ability, said he became involved after Ugbowan approached him with the idea, claiming he only assisted in executing the plan.

He said he purchased the SIM card used for the ransom call and helped facilitate the recording of the staged abduction.

He noted, “We had an agreement where she came to me and said if I could help her with some plans. She told me about the plans, and I said, “Okay, fine.” After so much pressure and begging, I said, “Okay, no problem.” Because, before that day, she had told me her plan to go and hide. And I said okay, no problem, fine, if that is the case. So I got the SIM card, and then she told me to go to a bar and wait for her so we could go to a hotel to start the call.

“She is very popular in Agbor. We took a bike, and the bike man took us to a nearby hotel. When we got there, she gave me money, and I paid the hotel fees. When we got there, we inserted the SIM card into her phone and used it to make the call. She said I should call her husband directly to ask for money. I just said 50 million, and that was what I requested from the man. I think it was a Thursday when the police caught me.”

He, however, expressed regret over his involvement, saying he did not anticipate the legal consequences.

“I just feel bad because I thought I was even trying to help her. I have landed myself in a big mess. We actually did not bargain.

“We did not bargain for anything, no percentage. But I wanted to help her, and surely I knew that something would come out of it for me,” he said

“I was told about a church drama.”

His younger brother, Chinedu Chibuzor, also claimed he believed the incident was a drama for church purposes.

He said, “I do not know Madam Oluchi. I was the one who pointed a gun at her head and told her to say her last prayer. She said she wanted to perform a drama in the church. My father owned the gun.”

Meanwhile, their father, who was also paraded, confirmed ownership of the unlicensed firearm used in the video sent to the victim’s family, saying it was acquired for vigilante purposes.

“It’s my gun. My family bought it for me, and it was not licensed. The video was recorded in my house. They are my children. I know Madam Oluchi through my wife,” he said. (The PUNCH, excluding headline)

Update news