…the touching story of Chief Ezeokafor’s abduction
By Chucks Nwonye
The abduction of Chief Sir Joseph Ebere Ezeokafor Snr., 72, founder of Jezco Oil Nigeria Ltd, has sent shockwaves through Anambra State and the wider Southeast, exposing the vulnerability of even the region’s most protected business dynasties.
According to sources familiar with the incident, the industrialist and philanthropist was seized penultimate week while praying alone at a prayer mountain in the Ifite Awka area. Ezeokafor, a deeply religious man who observes a monthly spiritual retreat, had reportedly stepped away from his usual convoy of police escorts and security personnel for a moment of private worship.
It was in that window that unidentified gunmen breached the secluded site. No shots were fired by security forces. The septuagenarian was taken into the thickets of Anambra, and the attackers disappeared without leaving an immediate trail.
Born in 1952, Chief Ezeokafor built Jezco Oil from a modest enterprise in 1980 into one of Southeastern Nigeria’s largest manufacturing, lubricants, and oil servicing conglomerates. To business circles, he is an architect of commerce. To his hometown of Ekwulobia, he is something more: a chief benefactor.
Over the decades, he funded local governance projects, provided large-scale COVID-19 relief, and bankrolled infrastructural development across Ekwulobia and neighboring communities.
His son, Joseph Ezeokafor Jnr., known widely on social media as Jowizaza, inherited the family’s prominence and became one of Nigeria’s most visible young socialites. That visibility, analysts say, may have also made the family a target amid a surge of organized kidnapping syndicates operating across the region.
Shortly after the abduction, the kidnappers allegedly made contact with the family and demanded ₦1 billion for Ezeokafor’s release. Sources say an inner circle of wealthy associates and industrialists moved quickly, pooling more than ₦200 million in a bid to secure his freedom.
However, the captors have refused to enter negotiations, insisting on payment of the full amount. As of Saturday, August 9, 2026, there has been no confirmed release.
The impact was felt immediately in Ekwulobia. In a move without recent precedent, the traditional ruler of the town, HRM Engr. Emmanuel Chukwukadibia Onyeneke, announced the total postponement of the community’s highly anticipated annual New Yam Festival.
“It is against our cultural conscience to celebrate prosperity and abundance while our most illustrious son remains in captivity in an unknown location,” a palace statement said.
Markets were subdued, and prayer vigils were organized across churches and town squares over the weekend.
The Anambra State Police Command confirmed that specialized anti-kidnapping units are actively tracking the syndicate believed to be behind the abduction. Former Police SAP Chairman, Ifeanyi Emmanuel Nwankwo has publicly called on South-East governors and federal intelligence agencies to launch what he described as “an immediate, decisive tactical operation.”
In a statement circulated on Friday, Nwankwo warned that holding a 72-year-old man in harsh captivity poses a severe threat to his health and also damages investor confidence in a region already battling security challenges.
“Chief Ezeokafor is not just a businessman. He is an employer of thousands and a symbol of what is possible when industry stays and invests at home,” Nwankwo said, maintaining that “His safe return is in the interest of the entire Southeast economy.”
The kidnapping has reignited debate about the security of high-profile individuals outside urban centers, and about the risks of predictable routines. Despite heavy security details, Ezeokafor’s decision to pray alone created the opening the gunmen exploited.
For now, the prayer mountain in Ifite Awka sits empty. In Ekwulobia, yam barns remain unopened. And across Nigeria, attention is fixed on whether the founder of Jezco Oil will be returned safely to the community that calls him its own.
The Police Public Relations Officer for Anambra State said investigations are ongoing and urged the public to provide credible information that could lead to the rescue.
More details will be updated as our correspondent is monitoring the situation in Anambra State.
