By Ovie Okpare
Arms-wielding kidnappers have abducted the Chairman of Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State, Chief Bright Abeke, in a brazen attack that sent panic across the area.
The council boss was reportedly whisked away at about 7pm on Friday at a hotel along Owumi Road in Sapele amid heavy gunfire.
Eyewitnesses said the hoodlums, numbering about 15, stormed the premises of the hotel and went straight for their target before forcefully taking him to an unknown destination.
The attackers were said to have arrived in a Range Rover SUV and two other vehicles, shooting sporadically to disperse residents and guests.
Sources disclosed that a member of a local vigilante group, identified simply as Ufuoma, was shot during the attack.
He was reportedly rushed to a nearby hospital, though his condition could not be confirmed as of press time.
Security operatives have since cordoned off major entry and exit points in Sapele as efforts intensify to rescue the abducted chairman.
The incident comes barely 24 hours after suspected gunmen reportedly issued threats to unleash violence in the area, heightening concerns over rising insecurity in the locality.
