Pregnant housewife fakes kidnap, buys house with ransom from Facebook lover

A pregnant housewife, Jamila Ardo, has been remanded for allegedly kidnapping herself and collecting a ransom from her lover.

Ardo, who hails from Wauru Jabbe in the Yola South Local Government Area of Adamawa State, allegedly abducted herself and collected the sum of N2m from Mallam Adamu Ahmed of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The 25-year-old woman, who allegedly connived with one Abdulaziz to fake her own kidnap to defraud her lover, succeeded in her plot.

She was said to have used the proceeds to buy a house.

The suspect and Ahmed reportedly fell in love after meeting on Facebook, unknown to the man that he was dealing with a married woman.

PUNCH Metro learnt that all through their dating, the duo never had physical contact, but the relationship blossomed as they kept in touch online.

Details of the fraud, as contained in the charge sheet indicated how Abdulaaziz, while conniving with Ardo, put a call through to her lover, informing him that she had been kidnapped and demanding a ransom.

During negotiation for her release, Adamu was said to have heard Ardo crying, as she pleaded with him on the phone to pay the ransom.

 Adamu was said to have deposited the money in a bank account with the name, Amina Mohammed.

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“After sending the money, Adamu was informed by his lover that the kidnappers had released her.

“Adamu, however, became suspicious and filed a complaint at the State Investigation Bureau on November 16, 2021,” the charge stated.

Detectives subsequently apprehended the owner of the bank account used to collect the ransom, Mohammed.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the suspect confessed that her friend, Ardo, requested the account number to receive payment from a friend.

Before the bubble burst, Ardo’s husband had reportedly queried her source of income, as she claimed that her relatives sent the money.

She was subsequently arrested and arraigned before Chief Magistrate Court I, Yola, on criminal conspiracy and kidnapping, contrary to sections 60 and 248 of the Penal Code Law.

She pleaded not guilty.

The police prosecutor, Inspector Abubakar Nurudeen, prayed the Magistrate, Abdullahi Digil, to adjourn the case to enable the prosecution to forward the case file to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions for legal advice.

Counsel for the defendant, C. Crowealth, who appeared alongside T. K. David, pleaded with the court to allow his client have access to a medical facility considering her condition.

Crowealth further asked the court to order the prosecution to avail them with all necessary documents to enable them to prepare for their defence.

Ruling, Digil granted the application and adjourned the matter till March 10, 2022, while ordering the remand of the defendant.

Punch