Mother, Teacher Plot Son’s Kidnap, Demand N15m From Father

The Nigeria Police Force has arrested a 34-year-old mother, her son’s lesson teacher and another accomplice over the alleged staged kidnapping of her two-year-old son and a N15m ransom demand in Jos, Plateau State.

The suspects, identified as Nansik Wuyep Sule, Catherine Davou and Luka Emmanuel Butdam, were paraded on Wednesday at the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) headquarters in Abuja.

The police said the suspects allegedly orchestrated the abduction of two-year-old Rito Jesse Daviu and demanded N15 million from his family for his release.

The child was reported missing on July 19, 2026, around Behind Bishop’s House, Sabon Barki, in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State.

Following the report, police operatives deployed human and technical intelligence to unravel the circumstances surrounding the disappearance.

The investigation reportedly yielded a breakthrough on July 23 when operatives of the Mine Special Duty unit in Jos, led by ASP Sarauta Mohammed, arrested Sule.

The arrest allegedly provided investigators with information that led to the identification of the other suspects and exposed the circumstances surrounding the child’s disappearance.

Speaking during the briefing, DCP Adamu Muazu said the child’s lesson teacher, Catherine Davou, allegedly became aware of Sule’s financial difficulties and suggested kidnapping as a means of raising money.

Muazu said the initial plan was to kidnap the mother, but Davou later proposed abducting her two-year-old son, believing that the child’s father would be more willing to pay a substantial ransom.

According to the police, Davou subsequently went to the child’s paternal grandmother’s residence, where she allegedly used balloons to lure the toddler before taking him away.

The child was allegedly taken to a location around Behind Grandsreal, Zawan District, Jos South, where he was kept while the suspects maintained the impression that he had been kidnapped.

The suspects subsequently demanded N15 million from the family and contacted the child’s grandmother, allegedly pressuring her to persuade her son to pay the ransom.

Butdam was also allegedly involved in communicating with the grandmother through a hidden number in an attempt to conceal the suspects’ identities and sustain the kidnapping narrative.

The police said the suspects later changed their communication method and obtained another SIM card to frustrate efforts by investigators to trace them.

However, detectives continued analysing the communications while gathering intelligence around the case.
The grandmother reportedly became suspicious after receiving a voicemail in which the voice allegedly sounded unusual.

The police said operatives subsequently traced the suspects’ communications, established their connections and located the child.

The toddler was rescued from the location where he had been held and taken to a hospital for medical attention before being handed over to his biological father.

The police described the operation as an intelligence-led investigation involving both human and technical intelligence.
The three suspects remain in police custody as investigation continues into the alleged kidnapping, ransom demand and the individual roles played by each of them.