Police have apprehended a budding gospel musician, Timothy Ukpa, widely known as Timothy Bliss, over allegations that he staged his own kidnapping and attempted to extort millions of naira in ransom. Timothy, a native of Ukawu in Onicha Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, reportedly conspired with his twin brothers and a group of Hausa accomplices to carry out the plot while residing in Abuja.
According to insider reports gathered by our correspondent, the incident took place shortly before the popular “MC Walter Family Hangout Show” in Abuja. Timothy allegedly informed his roommate that he was stepping out to purchase tickets for the event but suddenly went missing.
Two days after his disappearance, an anonymous caller speaking Hausa contacted Timothy’s family, claiming he had been kidnapped and was being held outside the capital. The caller demanded ₦20 million, threatening that failure to pay would result in his execution by Wednesday.
Sources said the alleged kidnappers even allowed Timothy to speak with his relatives in his local dialect, pleading for his life and insisting that others had already been killed. The family, growing suspicious, contacted a lawyer who immediately informed the Federal Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) and the Department of State Services (DSS), requesting a phone tracking operation.
Surprisingly, tracking data revealed Timothy was not in any remote area but in a low-cost hotel in Gwagwa, Abuja. Further investigation uncovered that his twin brothers had stayed with him at the hotel the same night he was reported missing.
Despite denying involvement, their phones were confiscated and examined, revealing multiple communications with Timothy. Posing as his brothers, police messaged the fugitive, who unknowingly replied, revealing he had fled to Kaduna to hide.
Upon realizing the situation had been exposed, Timothy returned to Abuja and reportedly confessed to staging the kidnapping in a bid to collect ransom money from his family.
At the time of this report, security agencies have yet to release an official statement regarding the incident.
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