By Chancel Sunday

BOMADI—An Army officer, simply identified as Lt.-Col. Josiah, has been kidnapped from his lodge, after attending a marriage ceremony in Bomadi Local Government Area of Delta State.

The incident, which occurred, yesterday in Bomadi, headquarters of the council, has caused panic in the riverside town, with soldiers from the Bomadi Division of the military Joint Task Force, JTF, patrolling Bomadi and surrounding communities.

Vanguard gathered that Lt Colonel Josiah attended a marriage ceremony in Kpakiama community, a neighbouring community to Bomadi, weekend. After attending the ceremony, he proceeded to his lodge at Bomadi, the council’s headquarters.

A source, who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that the kidnappers, who were armed, struck at the lodge about 2a.m., to 2.30a.m., ransacked the rooms, took the phones and whisked away the military officer in a ready vehicle.

“The kidnappers came to the hotel about 2a.m., to 2.30a.m. They searched every room, took the phones at lodgers and forced the military officer outside. They even fired shots before zooming out of the hotel premises with the military officer in their vehicle. There was also blood on the ground after they had left the premises.

“The following day, we heard that the JTF had found the vehicle in which they carried out the operation in neighbouring Tuomo community, which was abandoned by the side of the Tuomo-Ogbobagbene-Tamigbe-Torugbene-Ojobo road. The vehicle has already been brought to their base at Bomadi-Overside,” he said.

However, there is tension in Bomadi and environs over the incident, with residents expressing fear of the unknown over what they termed possible transferred aggression on ordinary citizens by the military.