How Gang Kidnapped, Killed 25-Year-Old Woman in Rivers Forest

The Rivers State Police Command has arrested a 26-year-old man, Goodnews Iberi, in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a 25-year-old woman, Rita Eleonu, along the Emuoha axis of the East-West Road.

Police said Iberi acted with four other suspects who are currently at large.

The Command’s spokesperson, Grace Iringe-Koko, said in a statement issued Monday in Port Harcourt that the victim was lured by the suspects on December 13, 2025, and taken to a forest in Emuoha Local Government Area, where she was held after being abducted.

According to the police, the suspects contacted Eleonu’s family and collected a ransom of ₦210,000. Despite the payment, the woman was later killed, and her body buried in a shallow grave in the forest. Police suspect the killing was carried out for ritual purposes.

Iringe-Koko said both the suspect and the victim are from Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

She said operatives of the Anti-Cultism Unit in Emuoha swung into action after a distress report was filed on December 29, 2025, by a relative of the victim. Following intelligence-led operations, Iberi was arrested at his hideout in the early hours of January 8, 2026.

During interrogation, the suspect reportedly confessed to the crime and led officers to the location where the victim’s remains were recovered. The body has been deposited at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital mortuary for autopsy.

The Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju, commended the officers involved in the operation and urged members of the public to support security agencies with credible information as efforts continue to arrest the remaining suspects.