A Nigerian agricultural specialist based in the United Kingdom, Dr Ayodeji Afolami, has narrated how a harrowing kidnap experience pushed him to leave Nigeria and abandon his academic research in the country.
The incident occurred on 4 August 2021 while he was working on his farm situated in Ibara Orile, Abeokuta, Ogun State, according to an interview published by Punch. Five armed men dressed in military-style camouflage emerged from the bush, seized his personal effects, and led him on an eight-hour march deep into the forest.
At the time, Afolami had finished the first year of his doctoral programme in Crop Production at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, which he began in 2019. He had previously acquired an undergraduate degree in Crop Production from Olabisi Onabanjo University in Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, as well as a master’s degree in Agronomy from the University of Ibadan, Oyo State.
Afolami spent three days in captivity under harsh conditions, facing constant psychological strain and physical violence. His captors beat him with gun butts and machetes while demanding a ransom payment of N30 million.
He stated that during the ordeal, thoughts of his academic goals and private enterprise disappeared, leaving him focused entirely on survival and returning to his family.
On the third night of the abduction, his family and friends delivered a ransom to the kidnappers following negotiations. The armed men divided the money among themselves and set him free, after which he was taken directly to a hospital to receive treatment for physical injuries.
Following his recovery, the emotional aftermath and lack of safety prompted him to relocate overseas. He subsequently enrolled at the Royal Agricultural University in the United Kingdom, where he completed his PhD in Sustainable Agriculture and Crop Production, specialising in soybean farming under northern temperate conditions.
