The Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested three more suspects allegedly linked to the abduction of the Dean of Agriculture at Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Professor Samuel Okunsebor.
The latest arrests bring the number of people apprehended in connection with the kidnapping to five, according to the information made available.
The development follows the DSS rescue of Okunsebor less than 48 hours after he was abducted at Mile Uku, a boundary community between Lafia and Nasarawa Eggon Local Government Areas of Nasarawa State.
The professor was abducted around midnight on July 15 by armed men who reportedly invaded the community and took him to an unknown location.
DSS operatives subsequently located and rescued him at about 3pm on July 17 following an intelligence-led operation.
Two suspects, including a woman, were arrested in connection with the incident at the time of the rescue.
The latest arrests reportedly took place on Friday night at a local brothel around Mararraban Akunza, along the Lafia-Makurdi highway.
A security source involved in the investigation identified the new suspects as 25-year-old Yakubu Abubakar, also known as Black or Starboy; 37-year-old Usman Abubakar Mairiga; and 27-year-old Sale Babauro Abubakar.
The source said the three suspects were being held by the Nasarawa State Command for further investigation.
He added that their detention was backed by a warrant issued by a magistrate’s court.
The latest arrests are expected to assist investigators in establishing the wider network behind the abduction and the respective roles allegedly played by those arrested.
After his rescue, Okunsebor was formally handed over to his family in the presence of senior university officials and was later taken to the Federal University of Lafia Teaching Hospital for medical evaluation.
The university had earlier commended the DSS for what it described as a timely rescue operation.
The incident has also heightened concerns over insecurity around tertiary institutions in the state.
In June, three students of the Federal University of Lafia were reportedly abducted from their residence near the university’s temporary campus in Akunza, Lafia.
Okunsebor’s abduction at Mile Uku, which sits between Lafia and Nasarawa Eggon, has therefore added to concerns over kidnapping along communities and routes connecting parts of the state.
Security agencies are now expected to continue investigating the suspects and tracing other individuals who may have been involved in the planning, execution or financing of the operation.
The identities of the two suspects arrested at the time of Okunsebor’s rescue have not been publicly disclosed.
The latest suspects have not been convicted of any offence and remain presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court.
