Emefiele and three others were abducted along Benin-Agbor road about two weeks ago and were released 24 hours later after the payment of undisclosed amount to their abductors.
The soldiers said they received N6.5m each as their share of the ransom, estimated to be around N80m.
Maidabra and George, who were paraded alongside seven others on Monday in Abuja, for alleged involvement in the kidnap, said they were paid the money for assisting the gang to transport the ransom to a hideout in Benin city.
Other suspects include a dismissed soldier, Ernest Uduefe; Mohammed Abubakar, Mohammed Musa, Mohammed Sule, Ibrahim Abdullahi, Aliyu Musa and Mohammed Yusuf.
Maidabra said, “We were not involved in the kidnap; we only assisted them to transport the money to a location. We carried the money and ran away with it in a vehicle. It was part of my friend’s share he gave me.. We didn’t know the money was from a kidnap operation.”
George corroborated his colleague’s claim, saying they only provided security cover for transporting the ransom to a hideout in Benin.
“I was not involved in the kidnap. The money they gave me was over N6m. I asked about the source of the money, but they didn’t tell me,” he claimed.
The Force Public Relations Officer, Donald Awunah, said the police recovered N14,725,000, two Honda Accord cars, one Audi car and one AK-47 rifle and two cartridges from the gang.
He stated that two jeeps worth N1.5m and N4m were recovered from Maidabra; while a Honda Accord estimated at N1.1m bought from his share of the ransom was recovered from George.
Awunah explained that detectives recovered N7.7m from Aliyu Musa, out of his N10m share; adding that Musa sustained bullet wounds after a gun duel with the police while trying to escape from the forest where they had kept their victims.
He said, “Mohammed Sule confessed to have received N10m in cash as part of his share of the ransom paid and claimed that a soldier and a gang leader escaped with the loot. Another suspect, Ibrahim Abdullahi, admitted to have also received N10m in cash.
“The police will continue to limit the capacity of kidnappers and other criminals who try to disrupt the quality of life of Nigerians. We will deploy adequate manpower and resources in crime reduction, detection and prosecution of offenders.”
On the payment of ransom, the police noted that it was sometimes used as a bait or bargaining chip to save the lives of the victims of crime.
“It is absolutely important to mention that the Police do not and will not encourage payment of ransom,” Awunah added.
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