By Muhammad Mamman
Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested the gang responsible for the kidnap and killing of renowned neurology professor, Ekanem Philip Ephraim, more than two years after her abduction sent shockwaves across Cross River State.
A credible security source confirmed that the gang leader, Patrick Essien Etim, 23, and his accomplice, Bassey Antiha Asuquo, 40, were apprehended on Saturday at a medical facility in Cross River State, where they were allegedly plotting another high-profile abduction.
According to the source, the DSS had been tracking the network since Professor Ephraim’s abduction in July 2023, when gunmen posing as patients seized her from her private clinic in Calabar.
The suspects have reportedly confessed, admitting involvement in the kidnapping and subsequent killing of the professor after collecting multiple ransom payments from her family.
“It has been two years of torment for her loved ones, not knowing what happened to the professor. I believe that, with this arrest, her family and loved ones will finally have some peace and the closure they deserve,” the source said.
A third suspect, Isaac Ekpeyong, was also arrested. The trio is said to have admitted to involvement in other kidnapping operations as well as vandalisation of electricity infrastructure.
Professor Ephraim’s abduction on 13 July 2023 triggered widespread outrage, with the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Cross River State chapter, staging protests and declaring an indefinite strike that crippled healthcare services for more than a week.
“This major breakthrough underscores the DSS’s renewed commitment to covert operations and the restoration of public safety nationwide,” the source added.
The suspects are currently in DSS custody as investigations continue.
