Notorious kidnapper, Evans reveals how he evaded arrest for so long as is revealed his father lives in poverty

Billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudi Dumeme Onuamadike, Evans, who was paraded at the Lagos State Police Command Headquarters in Ikeja on Sunday, June 11, 2017, has said he kept as much as seven gangs in order to remain elusive.

Evans said he started from his home in Anambra State during the tenure of former Governor Peter Obi but then relocated to Edo State. From Edo State, he move to Lagos, where he was arrested.

In an interview with Pulse, he said he acquired a property in Ghana, where he kept his wife and five children.

Read the interview below:

How did you start as a kidnapper?

“My friend, known as Hunch Man, introduced me to kidnapping and after a few operations during Peter Obi’s administration, we were forced to leave the state and we moved to Edo State. I had some boys from Warri, Delta State, working with me.”

How many kidnappings did you carry out then?

“We carried out two big kidnappings where our victims paid N80 million and N100 million respectively. In 2013, I came to Lagos and I went straight to Festac Town.

“Before I came to Festac, I had already established contacts with some boys. One of the jobs we did was that of the owner of Young Shall Grow Motors, Chief Vincent Obianodo.”

How did you carry out the Young Shall Grow boss’s kidnap?

“One guy known as Emeka, brought the job and we were five that went for that operation – Hunch Man, Nnamdi, Uche, Nwoke and I.

“I was the one driving and our target was to kill Young Shall Grow’s driver and his police orderly. Hunch Man, Uche, Nnamdi, and Nwoke were carrying guns and they were the people who fired at Young Shall Grow.

“Hunch Man and Uche were killed during the attack, while Nnamdi, Nwoke and I survived. That operation was my most bloody operation.

“I didn’t know it was going to turn out that way. I usually don’t know names of people I kidnapped in Festac. But if I see them,  I will tell you what I did to them. I have people who gave me information about my victims.”

Tell us about the pharmacist who escaped from your custody?

“The pharmacist job is the only one that gave us a problem. I keep my victims for months because I want their people to pay the ransom I demanded. I have people cooking for my victims, one of who stays in the house; his name is Uche.

“We kept him (the pharmacist) at Uche’s house in New Igando but he managed to escape. The other boy is from Aguleri. The boy is a new person, but Uche is old.

“I usually pay Uche N20 million for every operation. I usually make the calls for the ransom. I have six boys in Lagos.”

What is the highest ransom you have collected from your victims?

“The highest ransom I collected was $1 million dollars from somebody living in Festac.”

Do your family members know you are into kidnapping?

“My mother knows I am into crime but she is not in support. She has warned me several times to stop what I was doing. She does not come to my house because she is not in support.”

So how much did you buy your houses and how many do you have?

“I bought the houses in Magodo GRA for N130 million and N100 million. My house in Ghana is bigger than this one. I don’t kill. I don’t kill during my operations.”

The police in a statement described Evans as a very brilliant but vicious kidnapper who kept many gangs and did not interact with many of his gang members on a personal note and that made it difficult to pin him down.

Reacting, the Force Public Relations Officer (FPPRO), CSP Jimoh Moshood said:

“In every kidnap attack, he has separate armed groups that kidnapped victims with another armed group who takes over the victim to their hideouts and prevent them from escaping.

“The members of the groups don’t know each other. They complied with Evans instructions.”

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Meanwhile, the father of Evans said he lives in poverty and had no idea his son had come into wealth acquired illegally. He said the last time he saw his son was in 2008 at which time he advised him to desist from illegal means of acquiring wealth.

His father, Mr. Stephen Onwuamadike, said it was Evans' mother who misled him and that she had been manipulating him since he was three-years-old.

He also said he used to be very wealthy but Evans' mother led to his downfall and she left him with nothing.

 

His current wife and her son also accused Evans' mother of being the person behind Evans' predicament. They painted Evans as a good and loving son who was only under the influence of his mother.

Pleading with the Federal Government to forgive Evans, Mr Stephen Onwuamadike told New Telegraph that he has not been able to sleep since he received the phone call informing him that his son has been apprehended.

He said: “My son is a good boy, but his mother misled him.”

Stephen said Evans' real name is Chukwudumeje. He alleged that Evans is being spiritually manipulated by his ex-wife.

He said:

 “I was devastated when I heard the news through a telephone call; since that call, I had not been able to sleep. I believe in a straight forward and honest life. If I noticed someone is not honest, I run away from the person. When my business was thriving, I did business with white people. I was one of the early millionaires that emerged from this town until things went wrong courtesy of my first wife in 1985. She caused me so many problems and eventually caused my financial ruins. In fact, she brought me down to where I am today. I’m suffering and I can barely put food on my table.”

Stephen who lives in his country home at Akammili, Umudim, Nnewi, Anambra State,  said that he tried his best to raise Evans by sending him to the best schools around.

“My estranged wife kept interfering in his academics. You won’t believe that my son, Chukwudumeje (Evans) has not visited home since 2008. The last time I saw him was 10 years ago. I asked him the sort of business he was into. He said he was into drug trafficking. I advised him to desist because it was an illicit business and the law was against it. I told him plainly that it was better to be involved in a legitimate business and wait for God’s blessings. I did good business and it thrived; I was very successful. I have travelled to so many countries of the world in the course of my business,” Stephen said.

He added:

 “His mother started manipulating him when he was only three years old; look at where it has got him. I don’t even have his phone number. I’m pleading with the Nigerian authorities to have mercy on him and give him a second chance. He was misdirected and misled by his mother. I heard about all the millions, and I said to myself, do I have such manner of rich son and the roof over my house is leaking. I now survive by selling pigs.”

Evans’ stepbrother, Chidolie Onwuamadike, said his brother’s ruin was caused by his mother. He noted that if Evans had followed their father’s advice, he wouldn’t have become a criminal.

Chidolie said:

“As brothers, we don’t even interact at all. I don’t have his number and my heart is pained because he is such a loving, nice guy from the little I know of him.”

A tearful Mrs Etty Onwuamadike, Evans' step mother said:

 “Chukwudumeje is a nice boy when he lived with me. The only gift I gave him years back was the Holy Bible. I don’t want my son to die. I’m still convinced he will serve God.”