VANGUARD
They also took my laptop, phones, 200 dollars, headphones, power bank, the Villa tag, NAN Identity Card, some other monies and valuables. They said they had been trailing me from the Villa and were aware that I was from the particular assignment. I told them I am just one of the reporters deployed by NAN to cover the Villa. They said I should call my family to bring N13 million while I should bring N5 million.
I was so confused. So scared. I told them I am just a poor reporter and had nothing and no one. They scrolled through my phones and said I should call my contacts to bring money. I told them I only visit those people to pray for them.
They asked if I am ready to change my faith. I told them I would not. They said even at gun point? I said yes. They asked me what bloody civilians knew about security to even organise any seminar about it. They told me they were not “one chance” operators. They said they were soldiers with the two in front already dismissed from the service while the one beside me was still in service and currently in Abuja.
Those dismissed said they were kicked out in Sokoto and had come to Abuja for the Army General that sacked them, but did not meet him in his house. At that point, the journalist in me was curious to know why they were dismissed, but I couldn’t have asked them that ‘crazy’ question. They said they were forced into criminality because of the situation in the country and that Nigeria had turned them into criminals.
They tied my legs and said they would take me to Sokoto; they were discussing among themselves whether to throw me out of the speeding vehicle. They said they picked me because they thought I had money. And added that they wouldn’t have picked me if they knew I had nothing. I told them there was no money where I work. They showed me an Indian ring they could press on me and I would lose my memory Inside, I kept praying, while begging them not to harm me.
They collected the PIN of the GTB ATM card and withdrew everything. They took money that evening and continued in the morning of the next day as I was too traumatised to get GTB to block the account.
They took a total of N505,000 from the account. I was just sweating. And sucked up. I was just praying. One said they should waste me, one said I should be allowed to go. They kept moving round and round. Deep down in me, I believed that by God’s grace, they would not kill me.
