Popular Akwa Ibom Pastor who was reportedly kidnapped by unknown gunmen four days ago in his church premises has been released from the kidnappers den.
NewsBreak.ng reported that the founder and resident pastor of Solid Rock Kingdom Church, Apostle John Okoriko, was kidnapped on Tuesday by gunmen from the church premises and taken to an unknown destination.
The kidnappers reportedly demanded N100m ransom. However, when the family could not raise the money, the kidnappers reduced it to N30m and further slashed it to N10m on Friday afternoon.
However, it was not clear if the ransom was paid before the cleric was released.
But while tension was high due to the family’s inability to meet the kidnappers’ demand, the victim sauntered in amidst jubilation by his congregation and family members.
It was gathered that the kidnappers were not comfortable with keeping him in their custody because of social media and newspaper reports, which drew the attention of the government and security agencies to the incident.
Confirming his father’s release in a Facebook post, Okoriko’s son, Levi, wrote, “Our lion has come out stronger than before; he will continue to roar with the new strength.”
The Police Public Relations Officer, Odiko Macdon, confirmed the release of the pastor, saying, “I can confirm that Apostle John Okoriko has been released, but I don’t have any information at my disposal if ransom was paid.’’
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