Plateau Pastor Who Staged His Kidnap Twice Confesses To Other Crimes

The police have arrested a Plateau State self-proclaimed pastor for allegedly staging his own abduction twice.

Naija News reports that men of the state police command apprehended the said cleric following suspicions after his second abduction, which had his church members contribute money to secure his release from the staged gang.

Narrating the event, the spokesman for the police in Plateau, DSP Alfred Alabo, told reporters in Jos, the state capital, on Wednesday that the suspect, Pastor Albarka Sukuya of Jenta Apata, Jos, was arrested in November 2022.

”The police have uncovered the nefarious act of one Pastor Albarka Sukuya of Jenta Apata, Jos, who on several occasions staged his kidnap with his cohorts and received ransom from sympathising members of his congregation,” said the police statement.

It added, “Sequel to his spurious kidnaps of November 14 and November 15, 2022, where N400,000 and N200,000, respectively, were paid by his sympathisers as a ransom for his release, the incidents triggered suspicion.”

The command said through credible intelligence, the clergyman was invited by the DPO Nasarawa Gwong Police Station, CSP Musa Hassan, and an investigation commenced on him immediately.

After a series of investigations, it was established that the suspect has been conspiring with his gang to stage his kidnap and fraudulently collect (a) ransom.

Sukuya reportedly confessed to committing the crime while he also disclosed how on January 1, he set ablaze the vehicles and a bicycle parked at ECWA Bishara 3, Jenta Apata premises belonging to his colleagues.

The police said the suspect had revealed the identity of three other gang members, adding that two were arrested while one is at large.