Enugu Police Boss Kanayo Uzuegbu, Donald Ekete Accused Of Kidnap, Extortion

By Uzodimma Nwadike

An alarming incident of unlawful abduction, detention and assault of a prominent business man in Enugu, Mr. Tochukwu Nzekwe (a.k.a. Toshel) has unfolded in a circumstance likely to implicate both Enugu State Commissioner of Police, Kanayo Uzuegbu, and Mr. Donald Ekete(CEO Eketeson).

According to Mr. Nzekwe in a statement made available to the media on Monday, he was called by CP Uzuegbu a day prior to the incident (25th September, 2024) and was assured that the issues surrounding the damaged road and the brutal assault on the truck driver of Toshel Construction were resolved. He was told by Donald Ekete that no further action was needed. However, what happened next revealed a deeply troubling plot.

Mr. Tochukwu was unaware that he was being tracked by a group of men led by an individual known as “Lion-King,” allegedly identified as an officer from the Commissioner’s office, accompanied by three police officers attached to Mr. Ekete’s security detail.

These men, alongside the police officers, illegally detained Mr. Nzekwe at Oakland Hotels, where he had been lured under the pretense of a business meeting. Once there, Mr. Nzekwe was ambushed, and his phone was forcibly seized to prevent him from contacting his lawyers. He was violently assaulted, handcuffed, and blindfolded.

As his illegal detention escalated, Mr. Nzekwe was swiftly arraigned before Magistrate Chukwuani around 5:20 PM, with three fully armed police officers present in the courtroom, creating an intimidating atmosphere. The group, which included Mr. Ekete’s personal lawyer, Barrister Onyike, and a police prosecutor identified as Mr. Ajogwu, proceeded to take disturbing photos and videos of Nzekwe during the hearing.

In a shocking twist, Donald Ekete allegedly demanded a ransom of 28,350,000 million Naira for Mr. Nzekwe’s release from his unlawful detention saying it’s the money CP said he should collect to make it possible for his release and Etekeson lawyer’s account details was sent through SMS for the payment to be made. The details are:
0003075011
Access Bank
Barr. Sunday.

The whole trouble was said to have begun when three armed policemen attached to Eketeson Nigeria Limited, one of the firms undertaking the rehabilitation of roads in Enugu State reportedly beat up a driver.

The construction company is owned by Mr. Donald Ekete and the driver Okechukwu Ofor works with Toshel Nigeria Limited owned by Mr. Tochukwu Nzekwe. The driver was said to have used Toshel’s truck to destroy part of the asphalted road under construction.

The truck driver who was arrested by the policemen at the construction site were reportedly beaten mercilessly and dumped at Independence Police Station and disappeared. Some good spirited policemen at the station who saw him in a dying situation rescued him and took him police clinic at the police headquarters where doctors are said to be battling to save his life as at the time of going to press.

The Managing Director of Eketeson Nigeria Limited was said to have ordered the police men to brutalize dump him. According to Ofor, the police men had used the butt and muzzle of their guns to hit all over his body.

The matter reportedly took a dramatic dimension after the Managing Director of Toshel Nigeria Limited where the driver works petitioned the Enugu State Commissioner of Police, Kanayo Uzuegbu demanding justice for his staff.

It was gathered that while efforts were in top gear to resolve the matter, Tochukwu Nzekwe, the truck driver’s employer was allegedly kidnapped, detained by some suspected policemen and promptly arraigned in court after which he was ordered to be confined in prison.

According to a statement by the wife to the Managing Director of Toshel Nigeria Limited, Mrs. Nkoli Nzekwe, her husband was not the one who drove the truck but only cried out against the brutal and unrestrained attack on his driver through a petition. He ended up being kidnapped, detained and arraigned by proxy by the Commissioner of Police Uzuegbu.

Efforts to speak with police spokesman in Enugu, Daniel Ndukwe, an Assistant Superintendent of Police failed as he could not respond to our calls put across to him.

Meanwhile, it was gathered that the truck driver, Okechukwu Ofor was formerly working with Eketeson but resigned due to non-payment of his salary for six months. Unfortunately for him, Mr. Ekete on noticing that it was the same old staff who resigned from his company chose to mercilessly deal with him by using the policemen attached to his company to brutalize him.