Kidnapping-for-ransom has become one of the prevalent crimes in many Nigerian cities.

The police in Anambra State, South-east Nigeria, said they have rescued a kidnap victim in the state.

The police spokesperson in the state, Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.

Mr Ikenga, a deputy superintendent of police, said the victim was rescued on Thursday at about 7 a.m. by police operatives along Uga-Akokwa Road in Aguata Local Government Area of the state.

He did not disclose the identity of the victim and when he was abducted by the attackers.

He said the victim's SUV was recovered during the operation.

'How the victim was rescued'

Mr Ikenga said the police operatives, while on routine patrol along the area, sighted a motionless vehicle in a bush along the Uga-Akokwa Road opposite a fuel station.

"The police operatives, approaching the vehicle, discovered a man struggling for breath and with marks of violence all over his body," he said.

The police spokesperson said the victim was subsequently rescued and taken to a hospital for medical attention.

He said the police had begun investigations to track down the abductors.

Increased attacks

Like other states in Nigeria's south-east, security has deteriorated in Anambra State with frequent attacks by armed persons.

The attacks often target security agencies, government officials and facilities.

The Nigerian government has accused the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. But the group has repeatedly denied their involvement in the attacks.

The separatist group is leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the South-east and some parts of the South-south Nigeria.