Kaduna: Bandits kidnap 15, demand N180m ransom

No fewer than 15 residents were, on Wednesday night, kidnapped by bandits in Ungwan Gimbiya, Sabon Tashan area of Kaduna city, in Kaduna State.

The bandits, who were said to have stormed the area at about 11pm, broke fences and walls of several houses, and dragged out inhabitants from living rooms.

The bandits have, so far, demanded N180 million ransom for nine victims being held hostage, having released six the very night they struck.

Eyewitnesses said some kidnapped victims were left to go a few minutes after abducting them, allegedly on grounds of health.

However, when contacted, the Kaduna State Police Spokesman, ASP Mohammed Jalige, said: “I am in a meeting, I will find out and get back to you later in the day.”

But, at the time of filing this report, the spokesman was yet to get back to Daily Sun.

An eyewitness, who did not give her name in print, said: “The bandits came around past 10pm, then my husband was still outside with one guy, they were discussing and I was inside because I was having stomach upset; I was hearing a noise and I came out to the sitting room where I saw some men with knives, and they wanted to stab me and forced me to go outside.

“When I came outside I saw where they tied my husband and two other guys. My children were crying inside and I was shouting that they should allow me to go inside and pick my children.

“One of them said they should allow me to go inside and carry my baby. The bandits asked us if our neighbours were inside and we said we didn’t know. They threatened that if they went inside and saw anybody, they would kill us.

“They broke their door and brought all of them outside, they asked me to go inside and they went away with six of them, one man with his two sons, my husband and two other guys. I’m not familiar with the language they were speaking.”

An escaped victim whose name was not disclosed said: “I discovered that there was an attack at about 11:20pm, on Wednesday, I was hearing gunshots, I first heard the first gunshot, the second and third; on hearing the fourth gunshot they shook our gate and they couldn’t gain entry, they, therefore, broke the wall and entered our compound; then I and my wife had to run for safety.

“We hid in our bedrooms, but they broke my burglary and entered into my sitting room, kitchen and the other bedrooms.

“They tried opening the bedroom where my wife and I were hiding, but they couldn’t open it because I locked it with a key. They also destroyed it, but they couldn’t enter.”