Nigerian Navy officer, a Professor from the University of Calabar and 10 passengers who are grueling in the pirates’ hideout may lose their lives if each of them is unable to pay N3 million ransom, boat driver confessed.
The victims whose names are yet to be made public were said to have been abducted when sea pirates hijacked their boat that left Safe Journey beach in Calabar, Cross River State, to Oron beach in Akwa Ibom State on January 17, 2022.
Already, the pirates had released five persons abducted along the Calabar channel manned by the Marine Police and the Nigerian Navy.
According to the boat driver, the pirates blindfolded and released a four-year-old child, a pregnant woman, an injured person, an elderly woman and the driver of the boat at Akpabuyo Local Government Area of Cross River State on Wednesday.
Read also:
- Ibaka Women Protest Killings, Kidnappings Of Fishermen By Sea Pirates
- Commissioner Advocates Recruitment Of Repentant Sea Pirates Into Security Intelligence Network
- Sea Pirates kidnap 3 Cameroonians, 2 Nigerians at Calabar-Oron Water Ways
The released victims, who recounted their ordeal, said they heard them vowing that if by weekend those still in their den cannot pay the ransom then they will be killed.
The speed boat driver, Bassey Udo Essien, who is now in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS), told newsmen that the hijack was done by heavily armed pirates.
Essein said he was freed in order to take one of the victims who fatally wounded by the pirates’ bullets for treatment because the abductors had no form of medication in the camp.
“In the morning of Monday, 17 January 2022, we loaded from Calabar to Oron. Immediately we passed all the rounds and close to the Marine police at about 9:00 AM, we drove in the middle of the water because if we drive by the side of the water those sea pirates will quickly attack us.
Just a few minutes, about 10 minutes’ drive, we saw them driving to meet us. I increased the speed of our boat to the highest, unfortunately; it was not fast enough because our engine is 115 (horsepower) while theirs is 200 (horsepower).
“I couldn’t slow down because I was trying to escape from them, they started shooting. They shot sporadically at us and unfortunately, the bullet caught one of the passengers by the name Jesam on the face, close to the ear who sat at the second bench of the boat.
“Those pirates were up to eight in their boat fully armed with an AK-47 rifle, some masked their faces while some did not mask face, although I don’t know any of them.
“I was speeding up to cross to the Marine Police territory so they can return but my boat cannot speed than their own. They kidnapped us and took us to one dangerous creek when we just departed Calabar and had not approached Oron.
At the creek where they took us, they robbed us and collected everything we had – phones, money, shoes, wristwatches, bags, ATM cards, necklace, my boat; everything and also beat us.
“The rest are still in their camp. They are demanding N3 million from each of us and we were 17. The passenger who sustained gunshot wounds, Jesam did not escape. They knew with the gun injury he was at the point of death since Monday and maybe they thought if they allow him there he might die because nothing like treatment in their creek.
They collected his phone, money and laptop. Since I was the one taking care of the man there, they collected my money about N49,000, phone, seized my boat and allowed me to go with him. They beat me up and forced me to tell them my ATM pin which I don’t know if they have removed everything from the account because they collected my Sim card as well.
“They carried five of us in their boat and told us to lie down. The five of us they freed to go were- one pregnant woman, aged woman and a boy of about four years. Still left in their camp are 12 more persons. They dumped us where we don’t even know but we found our way somewhere in Akpabuyo, let’s say 10 AM because I did not have time with me. Luckily for me and Jesam, we were able to find a bike.
“We had seven girls and10 boys in the boat. My fear for those girls is that those pirates might rape them.
“There was a Navy personnel among us but we didn’t disclose the person because they saw the uniform and asked who the person was, they would have killed the personnel or any uniform man. I told them the uniform is a waybill. The place they kept us is so horrible, mosquitoes and other insects biting us. They kept women one side, men one side.
“While they were taking us to their camp, they forced us to close our eyes and bend down without looking up to see where they were taking us to. Even while they were taking five of us out to free, they blindfolded our eyes, especially mine. It was a terrible experience; they will cook whatever and anyhow food they like and say if you like you eat, if you don’t, leave.
“Eight of them came to kidnap us but in their camp, they are so many. They don’t even have one camp, we learnt they have up to three camps – outside the camp, inside the camp and their main camp which they took us to their outside camp, how much more their inside and main camps. One of the victims who tried to escape was recaptured and was well beaten.”
