Speaking in an interview with PUNCH, Adekunle who stays in Magboro, Ogun State, noted that he was abducted by the assailants two Tuesdays ago, September 6, along the Long Bridge, and close to the Mikano factory around 3.45am.
A photographer, Olabode Adekunle, has shared his experiences in the hands of Teenage Fulani kidnappers who abducted him along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway after his vehicle had a flat tyre.
Speaking in an interview with PUNCH, Adekunle who stays in Magboro, Ogun State, noted that he was abducted by the assailants two Tuesdays ago, September 6, along the Long Bridge, and close to the Mikano factory around 3.45am.
He noted that he and his brother, who was travelling abroad, were trying to beat the traffic by leaving home early as they needed to be at the airport by 7am.
Adekunle said he was sure they were Fulani teenagers because they spoke the language and were young boys.
He said, “Everything happened very fast, I must say. I was driving and one of the tyres of the car I was driving just burst. It happened close to Mikano factory. Before I got to that spot, there was a ghastly motor crash there, and the person with me in the car and I were still talking about it when the tyre burst. Some police officers were even around the spot. It was just like a dream, honestly. The guys were fast. It was not even up to five minutes and the Fulani guys just came out and attacked us and abducted me.
“Before then, I had just come down from the car – a Toyota Highlander (2006) – to see how we could change the tyre or manage it till we could change it. Before I got down, I was telling the person beside me how I thought it was a bad idea to have stopped there. After I checked and entered the car, the Fulani guys just attacked us. There were about three of them at first.
“So, while I was struggling with them, another one joined them and the guy beside me ran because the attackers came from the driver’s side. I couldn’t overpower them alone as they were hitting me and pushed me down from the bridge and I landed on the ground where others were waiting to collect me. When I found myself in that position, I just told myself that the end had come. I couldn’t struggle with them from that position again. That was how they took me inside the bush. We walked for like two hours on foot inside the swamp and through the water till we got to their hideout which is an uncompleted building with a decking.
“Later on, they told me they were armed robbers who were not scared of death. They threatened that if my parents did not bring the money, they would transfer me to a place called Mafia and to Zaria. They later said my family should take the ransom money to Ilorin.
“After they saw that there was no way in the world I could afford N10million, they reduced it to N3million. My family begged them for N2million, but they said even if they collected the N2million, they would still kill me. One of them said I should pray to my God because it was only Him who could save me from their hands. I was so scared. He kept saying he would collect that ransom and kill or transfer me to the Mafia. At around 8pm, we left that place and went back to the uncompleted building barefoot, where they told me to negotiate with my family. My people told them that the money was ready. They then said they should buy suya (roasted meat), cartons of tin milk and malt drink; packs of cigarettes and lighter when they were bringing the ransom. As we waited, no minute passed without them smoking hard drugs. I was so scared for my life.”