Arrest of notorious kidnapper: Nigerian IGP shared too much with public

A ranking member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has faulted the Nigerian Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Kpotoun Idris, for his public revelations on the notorious Nigerian kidnapper.

Mr Ablakwa told Joy News Tuesday that he “really would have wished that the Nigerian IGP did not put all the information as publicly as he did.”

Chikwudubem Onwuamadike, the ‘billionaire kidnapper’, was arrested two weeks ago in Lagos state, Nigeria and was found to be a holder of Ghanaian passport.

The circumstances under which he came to obtain Ghanaian passport are unknown, however, Mr Idris revealed the kidnapper’s wife and five children are resident in Accra.

Commenting on the revelations, Mr Ablakwa said his hope is that Nigerian IGP shared this information with Ghana earlier, and was hopeful that other arrests have been made.

“How we manage information is very critical,” he stressed.

The North Tongu MP also wants the security agencies to move fast to seal loopholes that allowed Chikwudubem Onwuamadike to move stealthily in Ghana.

“It is important that with adequate tracking the loopholes are quickly identified and closed so that other criminals, especially terrorists, would not exploit that and cause maximum damage,” he suggested.

Photo: Ibrahim Kpotoun Idris
At the West Africa National Security Conference at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, the Nigerian IGP called for bilateral intelligence sharing, revealing that the notorious kidnapper owns two houses in Accra.