Priestba Nwokocha: Female journalist abducted in Port Harcourt

Mrs Priestba Nwokocha, the director of News at the Rivers State Broadcasting Corporation (RSBC), was abducted by unknown gunmen in the state.

The news of her kidnapping was broken by Pastor Ebi Ogoloma, the Station’s Director of Administration. The unfortunate event occurred on Friday, July 21, as Mrs Nwokocha was leaving work along Slaughter/YKC road in Port Harcourt, somewhere between 7 and 8 o’clock in the evening.

According to family sources, her automobile had broken down on the Slaughter/YKC route, prompting her to call her husband for assistance. Her husband, accompanied by a mechanic, arrived at the scene to repair the vehicle. However, while they were working on the car, the kidnappers struck and abducted Mrs Nwokocha right in front of her husband and the mechanic.

“They just picked her and left; they didn’t pick her husband or hurt him,” one of the family sources confirmed.

The Rivers State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed the incident and stated that the Commissioner of Police has instructed tactical teams to take immediate action to ensure Mrs Nwokocha’s safe release and reunite her with her family.

Meanwhile, the Rivers state chapter of the Nigerian Union of Journalists has vehemently condemned the heinous act. In a joint statement signed by the Chairman, Stanley Job, and the Secretary, Ike Wigodo, they described the abduction as inhuman, wicked, and insensitive. The union called on security operatives to act swiftly and decisively to rescue Mrs Priestba Nwokocha and bring the perpetrators to justice.