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Regional News of Thursday, 19 August 2021

Source: www.premiumtimesng.com

Bandits abduct 10 students, teacher in Katsina

Armed bandits, Tuesday evening, abducted nine students of an Islamiyya school in Sakkai village in Faskari LGA, Katsina State, the police have said.

PREMIUM TIMES spoke to two residents of Faskari, who confirmed the abduction, but said the bandits also kidnapped one of the school’s teachers.

The police spokesperson in the state, Gambo Isa, said the children were returning from an evening lesson when they were kidnapped.

Sakkai is a remote village off the road linking Faskari to Yankara, which makes it vulnerable to bandit attacks.

Faskari is one of the 10 frontline local government areas in the state prone to kidnapping and cattle rustling.

“People saw the bandits going to Sakkai village where they abducted nine male students from the school. The students are aged between 12 and 19. No teacher was kidnapped,” Mr Gambo said.

“The students were on their way home from school. They were not abducted in the school. The students met the hoodlums coming into the village to perpetrate their crime, and the hoodlums took the opportunity to grab the students and they took them away on their motorbikes.”

A local source, Sani Ayuba, said the bandits were seen leaving some villages near Faskari before the students were declared missing.

“Today (Wednesday night), my friend from the village who lives in Faskari town told me that the abductors have not made any demand for ransom. But we feel that they would call the family,” Mr Ayuba said.

An anonymous source said bandits in the camp of the late notorious bandit, Dogo Nabajallah, were suspected of the crime.

“Since his death, his boys have intensified their attacks in local communities, possibly to avert being taken for granted by other camps and people of the communities. We are waiting for them to make their demands.”

Mr Nabajallah was killed by members of a rival gang in July.

Bandits have been very active in their activities in Katsina State, recording many abductions in the state in the past week.

Apparently frustrated by the rampancy of cases and helplessness of the security agencies, Governor Aminu Masari, on Tuesday, urged citizens to procure arms to defend themselves against the bandits.