Police investigates another kidnapping case in Volta region

Accra-based Joy FM reports that Marian Dzovakpor, a student of Sunrise Senior High School, has been missing since Monday.

The victim reportedly went to the bank to pay her school fees but did not return home.

An auntie of the victim, Beatrice Dzovakpor, said the kidnappers began sending images of the teenage girl and demanded a ransom before her release.

“She said she wanted to cut her hair before school resumes, once she finishes from the bank so I gave her the money. Two hours later, I tried to reach her but it was ringing without anyone answering it,” she narrated.

“My sister called from the bank to tell me that she did not make it to the bank, so I got curious. I concluded that either the money is missing and she is in town trying to find our driver to get some money.”

Fortunately, though, the teenage girl was found after one of the suspects who was arrested around the Aflao area disclosed her location.

Marian has since been sent to the hospital for a medical check-up as well as her statement taken by the police, her auntie said.

She added that the victim narrated how her kidnappers blindfolded her and forcibly gave her some concoction to drink which got her dazed.

This follows the kidnapping of seven teenage girls in the Takoradi in the Western region.

The Police has so far managed to arrest the suspect, identified as Nigerian national Samuel Wilson Udoterg, but have not been able to extract much from him. 

The Western Regional Police Commander, Redeemer Vincent Dedzoe said the Police has tried all they can but the suspect has simply refused to talk.

“We have tried all means to talk to him. In the initial stages, he took us to Kasoa [Central region suburb] and we combed the whole of Kasoa yet he could not lead us to where the victims are,” he said.

“He is not even ready to talk. He will tell you he doesn’t know where the victims are.”

The count on kidnapped teenage girls in Takoradi is currently at seven, with parents of the victims embarking on numerous protests against the Police’s slow pace in dealing with the issue.

There have also been criticisms from civil society groups, gender activists and some lawyers on how the Police has so far handled the cases.