A driver with an e-hailing company, Bolt, in Calabar on Wednesday night, escaped from kidnappers with gun wounds.

His kidnap, along Nelson Mandela Street by Target in Calabar South LGA, was foiled by football fans watching a Champions League game in the area.

The gunmen had blocked the bolt driver’s vehicle and tried to force him into their vehicle when his cry for help attracted the football fans.

Sensing danger, the kidnappers, who were already dragging their victim to the minibus, shot sporadically to halt the advancing mob and sped off in the minibus towards Goldie Street.

The bolt driver, who sustained injuries during the struggle with the kidnappers numbering six and armed with sophisticated weapons, was later rushed to an undisclosed hospital for medical attention.

However, the spokesperson for the police command in Cross River, SP Irene Ugbo, declined to comment on the matter, saying she had yet to receive the details.

Kidnappings and armed robberies have become more prevalent in Calabar recently.

Lecturers, lawyers, medical doctors and clergymen are usually kidnappers’ targets.

Some parts of the capital city have now become no-go areas at particular times of the day due to insecurity in those areas.

Places like Esiereebom, Iyonde, Jebs, Iboku, Ibesikpo, University of Calabar staff quarters and many other inner streets in Calabar South LGA have become notorious for kidnapping and robbery.

(NAN)