Kaduna kidnappings: Numbers rise, as panic heightens

On Wednesday, twenty commuters were reported to have been kidnapped along Kaduna-Abuja road, bringing the number of kidnap cases in Kaduna State to about 28. However, police and families of victims have disagreed over the number of those kidnapped.

While an eyewitness who is the driver of one of the vehicles attacked said the people abducted were over 20, the police in Kaduna have said there is no way such number of persons could have been abducted in one fell swoop.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Kaduna State, ASP Usman Aliyu said the command has recorded an incident where five persons driving along Kaduna-Abuja expressway in a Toyota Camry were attacked, three people robbed and the two others kidnapped and taken to unknown destinations.

Spokesman of the families, Danjuma Sarki Bello, who spoke with Daily Trust said the family of the four persons who were travelling in the same car that he knows have not yet been contacted. He insisted that the matter has been reported to the police.

The PPRO said as far as the police are concerned, no such thing occurred as it has not received any report along that line.

Bello, however, said he personally went to the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police to lodge the report and that the police should be aware of the incident. He said from the account of the driver, who escaped, it was evident that the crime took place.

The driver, who spoke with Daily Trust, confirmed the report that said the people that were led into the bush along Akilibu Village were up to 20 as they were brought down from not less than eight vehicles.

“I witnessed it and it was by the grace of God that I was able to escape, and even when I ran back to the expressway where I picked my car, some of the cars were still there. The kidnappers were even shooting and many people heard the gunshots,” he stated.

But Aliyu, in a statement yesterday said there has been no report of such incident to the police. He said when the report reached the command, the command’s technical and human resources were deployed to ensure the rescue of the two victims and the arrest of the culprits.

“In view of the foregoing, there is no way 20 people could be travelling inside one car or be kidnapped without trace or a report to the police by the relatives of the victims or witnesses to the crime,” the PPRO said, and re-affirmed the command’s commitment towards reducing crime and criminality to the barest minimum.

Residents of Kaduna metroplis and its surroundings have expressed fear, while those in rural areas have said they are used to cases of kidnapping around them, with merciless abductors demanding unrealistic ransoms for their loved ones.

Many travelers who spoke to Daily Trust have expressed fear at plying the Kaduna-Abuja road in particular, as the cases reported there happened in broad daylight. “There is little to no police presence on the roads. It’s disgraceful,” said Umar Alkali, a trader who is a regular traveler.

“It’s gotten out of hand, and the authorities need to do something fast, as the cases are practically cases of terrorism now,” Hadiza Bala, a teacher, said, adding: “That’s how Boko Haram began, and we all folded our arms and watched it grow.”

Yesterday, a prominent politician was kidnapped along Birnin Gwari road, and just last week, a member of the House of Representatives from Kano State, Garba Umar Durbunde, was abducted about 50 kilometres to Kaduna from Abuja on his way to Kano. Another incident was on May 9 when Pastor James Effiong Okon of Apostolic Church in Zaria was reported to have been abducted on his way from Zaria to Kaduna.

Two people were kidnapped along Jere-Bwari expressway in March 10 and on February 22, two Germans, an archaeologist and his associate, were kidnapped at Jenjela Village in Kagarko Local Government Area. Two Nigerians who attempted to thwart the abduction were killed. The culprits later demanded N60million as ransom.

Mohammed Bello, a 35-year-old Bureau de Change businessman was killed and three people kidnapped along Abuja-Jere road on January 16. There have been reports that several other people have been kidnapped within the last one week, even as kidnap cases increase across the country.