Sikiru Smith, abducted air vice marshal, released after 5 days in captivity

Sikiru Smith, a retired air vice marshal, who was kidnapped in Lagos state, has been released.

TheCable had reported that the retired air vice-marshal was kidnapped on Monday in the Ajah axis of the state.

Smith, chief executive officer of Double Wealth Ventures, a dredging and engineering outfit in Lagos, was abducted on a site in the area.

Smith was whisked away in a waiting speedboat.

The driver of the retired air vice marshal, identified as Corporal Odiji, was the one who raised the alarm via an SOS voice note.

“This is an emergency. I am Corporal Odiji attached to air vice marshal smith. They just abducted him from the site where we were working,” Smith’s driver had said in the voice note.

“Some gunmen who were wearing masks just came and snatched my boss now. They shot everywhere. I was near where I was fixing my boss’ vehicle.”

On Saturday, Adekunle Ajisebutu, the Lagos state police spokesperson, in a telephone conversation with TheCable, said the retired air vice marshal was released in the early hours of Saturday.

The police spokesperson did not provide more details on the circumstances surrounding the release.

In 1979, Smith was commissioned into the Nigerian Air Force as a pilot officer and had a highly successful military career.

He holds BSc, MSc, MBA and PhD degrees. He is an Alumnus of Harvard University and a fellow of many professional bodies including the Institute of Management, Nigeria.