Suspected militants in the Niger Delta have abducted four Itsekiri leaders and some officials of Elcrest, an indigenous firm, the Delta Police Command said.

The command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Andrew Aniamaka, confirmed the abduction to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Warri, Delta, on Friday.

NAN quoted him as saying: “The police backed by the military are on the trail of the hoodlums.”

The report quoted Maj. Abubakar Abdullahi, Coordinator, Joint Media Campaign Centre of Operations Delta Safe (OPDS), as saying that OPDS was on top of the situation.

“A reliable source in Warri said that the victims were kidnapped in a community in Benin River in Warri North Local Government Area at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday,” NAN reported.

It quoted the source as saying that the victims were returning to Warri from Ureju Community when they were abducted.

“The community leaders had gone to show the officials of Elcrest, a location for the firm’s proposed free medical outreach. “The kidnappers are demanding a ransom of N36 million from the company and also requesting their inclusion in the company’s payroll,” the source said.

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