From Ifeoma Ejiofor, Nnewi
An Ihiala High Court, sitting in Nnewi, was told how the missing Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in the 2021 election, Chief Obiora Agbasimalo, was still kept in custody after certain ransom payments had been made.
This was revealed by the seventh prosecution witness (PW7), Mr. Godwin Agbasimalo, aka: Oga Ndi Oga, in his evidence before Justice C.N. Mbonu-Nwenyi on the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of his cousin and LP candidate at Azia in Ihiala LGA of the state.
In the suit with no. HIH/15C/22, two persons – Chukwudi Odimegwu and Maxwell Nwokolo (first and second defendants) respectively, alongside others at large – are standing trial before the court for alleged conspiracy and kidnapping of Chief Agbasimalo as contained in a charge by the Department of State Services (DSS) at an Awka Magistrate Court in Charge No. MAW/506/2022.
Testifying before the Mbonu-Nwenyi-led High Court, the PW7, revealed that the 2nd defendant, Maxwell Nwokolo, collected undisclosed huge sums of money from him as ransom to facilitate the release of the kidnapped LP candidate from him.
Agbasimalo recounted that the 2nd defendant told him he had escaped from an unnamed camp on a certain day the camp erupted in tumultous jubilation of successful kidnap of Oga Ndi Oga Foundation boss (himself), only to discover it was not him, but a mistaken Identity, as it was his cousin who was attacked and abducted.
According to the PW7, the 2nd defendant severally demanded and collected ransome money from him, including the N5 million he handed over in two tranches of N2.5 million each, for transfer to the abductors, in addition to four motorcycles, which would be used to enter the unmotorable bushy path leading to the camp to bring the victim out.
He stated further that the 2nd defendant, who doubled as the Coordinator of “Oga Ndi Oga Solidarity Movement” for Ekwusigo LGA, had equally honoured a visit to the Palace of his traditional ruler, alongside four other supposed abductors, led by one of its commanders known as “Black Stone” and repeated all the things he had told him, including immediate release of the detained politician once the financial deal was struck and sealed.
The PW7 lamented that, after all the ransome payments, the 2nd defendant failed to live up to expectation to use his supposed close relationship with the abductors to secure the release of his kidnapped cousin till date.
Hearing in the matter continues.
