The Benue State Police Command has stated that Dr. Jonah Ogbaji, the Chief Medical Director of Multicare Hospital in Makurdi, was taken into custody by a squad from the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
In a brief statement released on Thursday morning by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Peter Aondongu, he explained that the doctor was apprehended by operatives of the Special Tactical Squad under the Force Intelligence Department, Abuja, over a matter that has not been disclosed.
Reports had been circulating widely on social media that the medical doctor was suspected to have been abducted at about 9pm on Wednesday while he was treating patients at his hospital located along Ankpa Road, Makurdi.
The daughter, who gave her name simply as Patience, also informed our correspondent by phone that her father, who had served twice as ex-officio of the Peoples Democratic Party in the North Central zone, was abducted, and she prayed for his safe return.
However, the state command spokesperson, DSP Peter Aondongu, in a statement issued later on Thursday, dismissed the reported abduction as a “false alarm.”
The PPRO said, “The command has received inquiries regarding reports of the alleged abduction of a medical doctor and owner of a hospital in Makurdi.
“Upon verification, the report is false. The doctor was not abducted. He was arrested yesterday at his hospital by operatives of the Special Tactical Squad attached to the Force Intelligence Department, Abuja, in connection with an ongoing investigation.”
The PPRO stated that the command was not yet aware of the specific circumstances surrounding the investigation.
The command urged the state’s residents to ignore reports claiming the medical doctor had been abducted or kidnapped.
