Operatives from the Edo State police command have apprehended Bassey Nyong Uweh (32) on allegations of kidnapping and murdering his employer, Henry Ohiengbomwan, a farmer, after receiving an undisclosed ransom.
Reports indicate that the incident took place in Igueze village along the Benin-Lagos expressway in the Ovia North East Local Government Area of the state.
The suspect, along with four accomplices who remain at large, were employed by the victim and are said to have conspired to abduct him following the harvest and sale of pineapples.
It has been revealed that two of the suspects hail from Akwa Ibom State, while the other three are from Nasarawa State.
Sources indicate that the deceased, a farmer residing in Benin, owned extensive lands of pineapple, cocoa, melon, and yam in his community (Igueze) and employed the five laborers on a monthly wage.
Furthermore, it was reported that on May 13, 2025, the deceased visited his farm with the five workers to harvest pineapples, selling the produce for over N900,000.
It was later uncovered that after the sale, his workers abducted him into the forest, seized the N900,000, and subsequently killed him, burying him in a shallow grave.
The kidnappers then allegedly contacted the victim’s family, demanding a ransom of N60 million for his release; however, the family insisted on speaking with the victim before proceeding with any payment.
The suspects reportedly asked for N300,000 to facilitate a conversation with the deceased, but the family refused to comply, even though one of the deceased’s brothers had paid the requested sum.
This situation raised alarms among the family members regarding the victim’s safety, prompting them to alert the police.
According to reports it was stated that by the time ransom negotiations began, the suspects had already murdered and buried the victim, fleeing the community to avoid arrest.
The Edo police command’s anti-kidnapping unit utilized cutting-edge technology to locate and apprehend a suspect in a creek in Eyo Abasi village, Oron, Akwa Ibom State.
CSP Moses Yamu, the command’s spokesperson, confirmed that one suspect was caught in Akwa Ibom.
He said that the suspect confessed to murdering the victim after collecting the ransom and then burying him. The suspect also led the police to a forest where the victim was buried in a shallow grave.
He assured that the investigation is still in progress to capture the other four suspects.
Late Henry Ohiengbomwan killed by employees
