June 17th To 21th: The Incredible Story Of How I Survived Kidnapping

June 17th to 21th: The scariest story ever This story is a real life story. It happened to me. (Names have been changed in this story for security reasons. My name Is Rex. (Not my real name), I work as a sales person for an alternative energy company. Our office is located at a major industrialised location in Port Harcourt. The money I was earning wasn't much, so I wanted to start a business on the side to supplement my income. I have been making plans to start a side business. I started my present work just 4 months back and I haven't saved enough money to start the side business. But then, I had a joint account with my dad. I haven't been operating this account, but recently, due to my dad's health condition, I was the only one who could operate the account. So, weeks earlier, I went to the bank to ask for the statement of account. I saw that the account had a little more than 2 million naira in balance. I had then called my eldest brother to ask if I could borrow money from I and my dad's joint account, since he was now the head of the family. He refused me, saying that I should try to build capital from my salary. Fast forward to June 17th. I left my house for work by 8am or so. We usually worked Saturdays because our target customers are usually available during weekends. That afternoon, I and my colleague were supposed to handle an interview of new junior sales persons that would be in my colleague's branch when she was out marketing. At about 12 noon that day, I recieved a WhatsApp message from our General Manager from Lagos. He sent me a name and a number to call. He said that the man (one Chief Amadi) needed street lighting done for him. I told him that I'll contact the man. I called the man and introduced myself. After introductions, he started giving me directions on how to meet him. He said he was located near Igurita, Rivers State. Igurita is a 35 to 40 minutes drive from Port Harcourt. I was a little scared, especially since I was going alone, but I have gone marketing alone to other areas besides, I wanted to make the sale so as to meet my monthly target. So, with my office light on and my small rechargeable lamp plugged in the socket, I locked the office and went to see Cheif Amadi. I reached Igurita about an hour later and called the man. He said he was sending a driver to pick me up. I waited for another 25 to 30 minutes before the driver arrived. The driver called me and asked where I was. I told him I was standing inside a filing station at the Igurita market junction. I also told him what I was wearing. He insisted that I should cross the road and meet him where he was. I crossed the road, saw him and we entered his car. As we were going, he picked up a woman, dropped her and later picked up an elderly man and also dropped him. He collected money from them as a taxi driver would. (Later however, I would get to understand that those were prearranged passengers.) We have been driving for about 20 minutes now, and I started getting suspicious. I asked the driver how much further the place was. He said it was a few more minutes away. I was skeptical, so I called the "chief Amadi". He reassured me that we were on the right track that we were going to do rural electrification for them. On hearing that, my confidence returned. I felt like I have already met my target for the month. We drove for another 10 to 15 minutes and entered Igbo Eche, then drove another 5 minutes or so and entered a place the driver said was Achara. He entered a very long, lonely untared road with thick bushes on either side. We drove on this road for about 1 or 2 minutes, then the car slowed down and stopped. Five or six men started coming out from the left side of the bush. I immediately sensed that this was a kidnapping and I opened the door and tried to escape, but one of them braced the door. I pushed and ran. I didn't get more than 2 meters before they grabbed me. The held me by my waist, covered and tied my eyes with a clothe, then they pushed and pulled me deep into the forest. As they were shoving me, they told me that someone has already paid for me to be killed. They took me along into the forest and we kept walking for about 2 minutes beating me all the while, then they stopped suddenly. Forced me to sit down and tore my shirt and singlet. They told me that one Alahaji wanted kidney. That unless I provided 6 million naira between that time (about 2 pm) and 6pm that they would kill me and sell my kidney to the Alahaji. I begged and begged. All fell on deaf ears. They started talking about the Alahaji and another person (Odogwu) and deliberating who among the two would pay higher for the kidney. Before long, I heard them on the phone with Alahaji, I didn't hear what was been said, but I was certain that I was gone. They asked me to call people I know who could save me. I called my siblings, called my employer and colleagues and told them that I was been held and that they would sell my kidney by 6pm if I didn't provide them with 6 million naira. After a while, others left taking my ATM card and pin. Two men were left to guard me. They started asking me lots of questions to know who I was. I told them that I was a Jehovah's Witness. They asked me several questions, and I kept my cool in answering even smiling at times. I told them that I could provide them with 2 million naira. I told them that was what I was sure of. I also told them that it was a joint account with my dad. They said that can't collect 2 million when some people could pay as much as 11 million for kidney. I begged and begged for them to collect the 2 million as that was all I had. They called my eldest brother and I told him about the account and that it had some money in it. He said that he couldn't access the account. That it was on I or my dad that could access the account. And my dad was bedridden. I begged him to get my sick dad to do it no matter how he did it. I lay in the bush with my bare skin, only wearing my trouser till night came. I knew it was night because of the insect and bird sounds and the cool weather. They stood me up, untied my legs and took me to an uncompleted building. As I was entering, I heard the voice of a northerner. I frooze! So, this was it. I kept praying to Jehovah. I prayed that he save my life and also prayed to him that even if I was to die, let him please remember me in his kingdom. I said this prayer throughout my Kidnapping, severally, maybe a hundred times or more. They pushed me forward, and I entered the room. They laid me on the floor. I was afraid as never before. They were discussing in low tones and I didn't get what they were saying. (Their language is a distant variation of Igbo language. Thus I could make out a few words and sentences, but not always) After about an hour, they dragged me up and took me into the forest. I was sure they wanted to kill me now. I started singing our Kingdom Songs (worship songs) and praying. After about 10 minutes of walking, we came to a room. The room had rug on the floor. They lay me down. All of them, about 5 or 6, crowded the room and they slept near the door. That night, I tried untieing the ropes and espaping, but the ropes used to tie my hands and legs were stiff. Later that night, I heard the cry of a baby. I thought their neighbour must be a family man. I was wrong. The baby cry lasted for about 15 to 20 seconds then stopped. Later that night, I heard the man in that other room reciting incantations and humming ominous sounds. That was when I realised that I was near a ritual ground. My fear intensified. In the morning (Sunday morning) they took me into the bush. I was still blind folded all this while. I sat on the floor, with my hands and feet tied. Under the rain and sun I sat in the bush throughout this Sunday. I sat there till night fall, then they spread a carton on the floor and I slept on it. On Monday, they contacted my brother and told him to bring the money putting it inside 2 big loaves of bread. Meanwhile, as I was to learn later, my brother was already in Port Harcourt working with a brother in law and the police on getting me back. Somehow, that Monday, they finished late, and the kidnappers were told that the money was delayed by the bank because the money was a large sum. But the truth was that the police were trying to track the criminals. On that Monday, I received horrible beatings and was made to talk to my people, blaming them for my death. They used machete, tree branches and bear fists to hit me severally. Somehow, I survived Monday. They told me Tuesday was my last day. If nothing happened that by evening, they would kill me. That Tuesday I made frantic calls as I have never made before. (They place the call and push the phone to my ear, and I was blindfolded all the time). And to make things worse, if I was told to say something on phone and I said something similar but not the exact same words, they'll slap me with machete and tree branches. I thank God the machete didn't tilt in their hands and cut my head. My brother later called that he was at Ngor Okpala junction (where they had told him to come) with the money. They dispatched some men to go and collect the ransom. I waited for maybe 2 hours, then the men returned with news that they have collected the money. I was worried because I didn't see my brother or hear from him. I was certain that they had collected the money and killed him. Also, the way they were talking in low tones made me more certain of that. I asked them about my brother, their answers weren't corresponding. So I started crying that they've killed my brother. After crying for about an hour or two, I was thirsty.( The first day, they gave me satchet water. The second day, bread and soft drink. The third day was rice with very little water - one - tenth of a cup.) So, after crying, I was very thirsty. I was certain that after collecting the money, they also wanted to kill me and my brother to sell our organs and maximise their gains. I was certain of this but I was too thirsty to care, so I asked for water. They gave me a drugged water. After taking it, I slept. When I woke up, I was high on I drug. My mind couldn't function properly. I was unable to coordinate. I was numb and unresponsive. At night, they carried me through a forest onto a waiting bike. They gave orders to the bike man and another man climbed behind me to hold me. I was sure they were taking me to Alahaji finially. After driving for about 20 minutes, the bike man stopped. The man behind pushed me down and asked me to start walking. I started walking not knowing where I was going. They drove away. It was all like a dream. I walked for about 10 minutes in one direction and decided to return in the other direction. The scenery was the same. I was lost in a forest. I was confused and the drug was very strong on me. In amidst the confusion and drugged feeling, I lay down in the darkness on the road and slept. I woke up felling clear headed and realised that I was really in a forest and that it was no dream. When I woke up, it was still dark. So I imagined that I had slept that night, through the morning, afternoon and then woken up at night the next day. I started wondering "So, no one passed this road the entire day so as to wake me up? That means this is really a deserted forest." I became really frantic to find a house or any village settlement. I walked in one direction for several minutes and then I smelled something. It was the smell of weed. The same type smoked by my kidnappers. I immediately reversed and started running in the opposite direction. My legs were hurting me really bad, but I kept on. While walking, I saw a torchlight beaming in the forest. I was told by my kidnappers not to mention that I was kidnapped to strangers, else, the person might kidnapp me again seeing that I'm vulnerable. So, I wanted to avoid seeing anybody in this lonely bush. The torchligh went off and was off for several minutes. When I didn't see the light again, I came out from hidding and started walking fast. I was still walking when a vigilante man shouted "Run and I shoot!". I stopped, raised my hands and walked towards him. He started calling out to other vigilante men. They all started coming out from the bush, about 5 or 6 of them. They started shouting that I was a theif and murderer and that they were going to kill me. They started flogging me with their machetes all over my head and body. I was trying to calm them down and tell them that I am a salesman and that I was kidnapped. They wouldn't listen and continued beating me. They later asked me to provide a number for them to confirm. I called my elder brother's number. It rang twice, but he wasn't picking. They asked me to sit on the floor. I did. They now saw the deep cuts in my ankles as a result of being tied up for 3 days with wire. They then started to believe that I was kidnapped. They started asking me how it happened. I told them everything. They took me to their lodge, and gave me water to bath. They later told me that it was early in the morning (around 3 am) and not evening as had earlier presumed. In the morning, they gave me food to eat and contacted my family who in turn called the Police. The Police, SARS and Anti-Kidnapping Unit came at about 9 or 10 am. After documenting and videoing me the way I was, and asking me some questions, they took me with them to their office in Port Harcourt for debriefing. All Thanks To Almighty God, Jehovah. THE END