Police Arrest Female Manager, Husband For Allegedly Killing Employer,  After Collecting N15m Ransom

Operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested a man identified as Larry Adebayo Adewumi and his wife Okereke Olufunmilayo, with one Adebowale Sanni over their alleged involvement in the abduction and killing of a popular hotelier, Otunba Abayomi Ajayi Smith, the Director of Rolak Hotel Ijebu Ode.

Otunba Ajayi Smith was kidnapped on the 28th of September 2020 at about 7:30 am, at Anifowose Estate igbeba, Ijebu Ode by some gunmen.

A statement released by the spokesperson of the state police command, SP Abimbola Oyeyemi, says on receiving the information about the kidnap, men of the anti-kidnapping unit were then mobilized to commence an investigation, but all efforts to get the victim out of captivity proved abortive, despite the fact that the victim’s family paid a ransom of 15 million naira to the abductors.

”Since then, police operatives have not relent in their efforts to fish out those behind the devilish act. The efforts of the SP Taiwo Opadiran led team yielded positive result in September this year, when they got wind of plan by the hoodlums to strike again, this time, the wife and son of Otunba Ajayi Smith were their target.

The team, having got the intelligence report, embarked on technical surveillance for the suspects. Consequent upon which one of them was traced to Ikeji Arakeji in Osun state, where the 55 years old Adebowale Sanni was apprehended.

On interrogation, he confessed to have been on the trail of Yeye Olusola Roseline Ajayi, the wife of their earlier victim, Otunba Ajayi Smith in order to kidnap her, on the order of Larry Adebayo Adewumi the ring leader, whose wife Olufunmilayo happened to be an employee of Otunba Ajayi Smith.

He confessed further that it was Larry who described the location of the victim’s hotel and his other business outfits to him with instruction that if they succeeded in kidnapping the woman and her son, the two of them must be killed after collecting ransom in order not to leave any trait, just as they did to her husband two years ago.

His confession led to the arrest of Larry’s wife Olufunmilayo who was a manager at the victim’s building materials shops.”

According to Oyeyemi, Larry, an indigene of Ilesha Osun State, was once a fraudster before he moved into full-time kidnapping business.

“His modus operandi was to scout for a rich victim, after which he will mobilized the gang working for him to go after such a person,” Oyeyemi explained.

The said Larry was reported to have got full information about the late Otunba Ajayi through Olufunmilayo, who was the deceased’s Manager.

Police investigation has revealed that Larry has two bank accounts, “where he used to keep money realized from his criminal activities.”

Oyeyemi disclosed that the suspect has a Jaiz Bank account number, 0010913206, with the sum of N34,953,455. His Access Bank account also has a sum of N4,576,846.

It was gathered that a 2014 model Toyota Highlander was also recovered from him.

While commending the police team, the Commissioner of Police in Ogun, Lanre Bankole, directed that other members of the gang be hunted for and brought to book, directing that the suspects be charged to court as soon as investigation is concluded.