Kidnapping is one of the most sophisticated and festering heinous crimes being perpetrated across the country. Our correspondent, Michael Ofulue sought the view of some legal practitioners on the ill that appears unchecked or has defeated every strategy adopted by various security agencies to curtail it. Excerpts:

The case of kidnapping in Nigeria has become a strong threat to the national peace and security. It has affected the national image of the state and has also eaten so deep into every region and segment of the nation.
Thousands of Nigerians have fallen victims of the crime and have had to pay millions of dollars as ransom for their freedom. Kidnapping and abduction is seen as a lucrative business and the fastest means to wealth by those who are involved.
Kidnapping started in the oil rich Niger Delta region in the early 2000 where the agitators took expatriates working with multinational oil giants hostage so as to force oil companies operating there to carry out community development projects for the benefits of the host communities into negotiation for more of economic benefit accruing to the federal treasury meant for the region.
However, the crime of kidnapping will continue to prevail in the country until strict measures are adopted into our justice system and also the unreported cases of kidnapping must be reported and prosecuted accordingly. Many states governments have come up with their own anti -kidnapping laws for instance Ondo State Anti- Kidnapping and Anti – abduction Law 2010. Section 2 of the Ondo State Anti- Kidnapping and Anti abduction Law 2010 states that kidnap or abduction includes the unlawful removal or exportation of a person from any place where he or she is to another place from the vicinity where he or she is found or confinement of a person in any place without his or her consent with any of the following intention or purpose:
To hold for ransom or reward or
a shield or hostage
to facilitate the commission of a felony
to inflict bodily injury or terrorise the victim or another or to interfere with the performance of any governmental political function or to interfere with the person’s business or the business of another.
It is trite in section 3(1) of the Ondo state Anti Kidnapping and Anti abduction Law 2010 that “ Any person who takes as hostage, captures, kidnaps, abducts, seizes a person or by any means of instilling fear, tricks, carries, snatches or takes another person with intent to demand ransom from that person or from another or compel another to do anything against his will or achieve unlawful purpose commits an offence.
Section 3(ii) Any person who contravenes section 3(i) of this law:
Where the life of the person taken hostage, captures, carried, snatched, kidnapped, abducted or seized is lost in the process shall be liable on conviction to death by hanging.
Where the life of the person taken hostage, captured, carried, snatched, kidnapped, abducted or seized is not lost in the process shall be liable on conviction to life imprisonment.
This is a specific law and it expands the definitional scope of kidnapping beyond what the traditional criminal law that existed in the country.
The law also recognises the act of aiding kidnapping by corporate body and proffers pecuniary punishments for such corporate body if found guilty. The law recline is the widely held belief that capital punishment deter crime. It is this convictions and not the insatiable urge to shed human blood that has driven the law makers into panic measure of stimulating capital punishment for the offence of kidnapping.
The theory of deterrence posits that punishment should be apportioned with an eye at discouraging would-be offender from the committing such offence.
The fear of severity of the punishment is expected to discourage people from committing crimes. The offence of kidnapping and abduction is a grievous offence and the offenders should be given the maximum punishments as stipulated in the laws of anti kidnapping and anti abduction of each states.

Kidnapping is a capital offence committed when the suspect adopts his victim and put him in a state of complete and unlawful deprivation of his freedom of movement for the purpose of extorting ransom before the victim could be released.
The offence is more heinous than armed robbery and murder as it puts not only the victim, but as well as his/her relatives into traumatic conditions.
Many of the victims are either murdered or released after collecting ransom from his/her relative. It has discouraged investors from developing the communities and has created unemployment.
With the EndSARS protests, they are now at loose, as many police are now clapping hands for them for paying the society with same as police presence in the society is now minimal.
There is no punishment that can be too much for the alleged offence. We therefore suggest death penalty as a deterrent for like minds especially when jail break is now rampant and a great deal for the criminal to escape.

Should Kidnapping suspects be sentenced to life Jail or be condemned to death?
Kidnapping is an act of taking people as hostages and unlawful taken into Captivity of persons by use of force or other coercive means with the use of sophisticated weapons and or luring others into captivity with the sole aim of collecting ransom and unlawful demands for payment of ransom from relatives of the captives by the captors as it has become an organized crime.
The notorious acts of Kidnapping had thus comes under intense scrutiny and fusillade of attacks and condemnation across the globe and this led to the enactment of Anti Kidnapping Act LFN 2006 and domestication of the Anti Kidnapping Laws across the States of the Federation.
Like the Edo State law on Kidnapping provides for Death Penalty, Benue, Death Penalty, while in Ondo State and most other States, Life Imprisonment was the penalty if found guilty.
Former Secretary of Government of the Federation (SGF) Chief Olu Falae was Kidnapped for days in his Farm and was unlawfully taken into captivity.
Between boyfriends and girlfriends had been sanctioned with terms of imprisonment ranging from degree of aiding and of seven years to 14 years and life imprisonment as Contained in the law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the States of the Federation, the Case of Evans Chukwudumeme,
The notorious Kidnapper in Lagos is a case study as he was sentenced to death.
Federal and State laws have death penalty and life imprisonment spelt out for the crime, but l will go for life imprisonment in view of the abolition of death penalty across the World.
But both are sufficient due to the deadly nature of the crime on the level of involvement and the Federation or State law. About the case of the 16 Iyalojas in Ondo State that were kidnapped last week, police rescued 10 and 4 O of the captors while the Kidnappers were arrested.
According to the Police spokesman, ASP Tee-Leo Ikoro, Chief Mrs Hellen Edward the lyaloja of Isua in Akoko East Local government area and 5 others that could not be rescued by the Police were later released by their abductors after paying the sum of N5million ransom. So to me, Life Imprisonment is okay but, death sentence is better, so as to serve as a deterrent to others.
The Senior lawyer cited relevant sections applicable to the Anti-Kidnapping Laws of Ondo State 2016 and the Provisions of the Criminal Code Laws Of Ondo State 2006 which are the laws stating degrees of sanctions on Life imprisonment or on Death penalty.

The word Kidnap according to the interpretation Act means unlawful removal or exportation of a person from any place where he or she is, to another place from the vicinity where he or she is found, or unlawful confinement of a person in any place without his or her consent.
It could be for hostage, ransom, or to terrorize the person.
The position of law with respect to the Ondo state Anti Kidnapping & Anti Abduction law 2010 is with effect that where the life of the person taken hostage, captured, carried, snatched, Kidnapped, abducted or seized is in the process, the kidnappers shall be liable on conviction to death by hanging.
And if otherwise the life is not lost, he shall be liable on conviction to life imprisonment without any option of fine, with respect to Section 3a & b of the law.
The punishment for an attempted Kidnap is 20 years imprisonment with respect to Section 4 of the law.
The position of law is very clear, so the punishment for Kidnapping depends on the facts before the court.