Major Josiah, the army officer kidnapped in Bomadi Local Government Area of Delta State, has been rescued from the dense forest of Tuomo community by a palm-wine tapper and a group of lumberers.
Major Josiah was kidnapped from his lodge on Sunday night by armed youths who broke in during the night, searched the rooms, and took him away to the creeks in Burutu Local Government Area of the state.
According to a local source, the army officer was discovered in the dense forest of Tuomo community, near the spot where the kidnappers had abandoned the vehicle used during the abduction.
Two villagers shared different versions of the story, saying: “Early this morning, a young girl left her father’s palm-wine camp in a canoe to check her fishing nets. While doing so, she spotted the army officer sitting in another canoe nearby. She quickly returned home to inform her father.
“After hearing what his daughter saw, the man followed her back to the spot and found Major Josiah sitting in the canoe, with his hands tied to one of the seats. He had also been shot in the leg and hand.”
“The palm-wine tapper untied him and took him back to his camp,” one source said. “He then went to a nearby lumber camp to inform them of what had happened. Since it’s flood season, they used a canoe to bring him through the creek into the community early this morning.”
Another villager, also speaking about Major Josiah’s rescue, said: “People in the forest heard someone shouting and crying out in pain deep within the Tuomo forest, where palm-wine tappers and lumberers usually set up their camps.
“Some lumberers decided to follow the sound, and when they reached the location, they found the officer, wounded with gunshot injuries to his leg and hand.”
“They brought him to a nearby palm-wine tapper’s camp and explained what had happened. Together, they agreed to take him back to the community. So, they placed him in a canoe and paddled through the creek, arriving in the community earlier this morning.”
The community quickly notified the Bomadi Division of the military Joint Task Force (JTF), who arrived and took Major Josiah into their custody.
Attempts to reach the military command in Bomadi for comments were unsuccessful, as calls to the commander’s phone went unanswered at the time of reporting.
However, a source in Bomadi, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that Major Josiah had already been taken to an undisclosed hospital for medical treatment.
Read also: Gunmen Abduct Army Lt Colonel in Bomadi
