In some parts of the country, kidnapping has become seemingly intractable such that kidnapping gangs are becoming so emboldened and daring. Kidnap-for-ransom is becoming a significant security challenge which needs to be tackled with concrete efforts and determination on the part of the government.
While the North is generally considered as the epicentre of abductions, kidnapping operations in the South-East tend to be slightly different. Kidnapping operations in the South-East are mostly commercially inclined with high-net-worth individuals, travellers, and members of the clergy being the targets in most instances.
As disclosed by SBM Intelligence in a new security report, not less than 257 people were kidnapped in Nigeria’s South-East between July 2024 and June 2025. The report further revealed that out of N1.005bn in ransom demanded by the kidnappers in the South-East over the period, the kidnappers got only N157.55m. In the case of the kidnapping of Reverend Father Gerald Ohaeri of Nsukka Diocese (Enugu) in December 2024, it was stated that N40m was reportedly paid. Whereas in the case of a Catholic engineer in the Nimo community, Njikoka local government area of Anambra State, who was kidnapped in November 2024, N50m was demanded by his abductors.
