Five expat workers abducted in Nigeria

Two locals also taken and one killed in assault on their vehicle

PORT HARCOURT: Three Australians, a New Zealander and a South African have been kidnapped along with two locals in Nigeria’s southeast after their vehicle was attacked, officials said.

The holdup, in which the driver was shot dead, happened in the Akpabuyo district near the capital of Cross River state, Calabar, at about 7am (1pm Malaysian time) on Wednesday, Nigerian police said.

Those taken were believed to be workers with Australian mining and engineering giant Macmahon, which was contracted to cement major Lafarge-Holcim in the state, police commissioner Jimoh OziObeh told reporters.

“The police is currently working with the Nigerian Navy to ensure that the victims are released unharmed,” he added.

OziObeh said five people were taken – two Australians, a South African and two Nigerians.

But Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said three Australians were kidnapped and the foreign affairs department in New Zealand said one of its nationals – who lived in Australia – was also a victim.

“We are working with the authorities, local authorities, at the highest levels,” Turnbull told reporters in Geelong, Australia.

“We don’t know at this stage the identity of the kidnappers and families in Australia are notified of course.

“It is a very serious kidnapping, a very serious criminal assault, one person was killed and seven people have been kidnapped.”

While commissioner OziObeh said no ransom had been received, New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said cash demands for kidnapped foreign nationals were “not unusual in that part of the world”.

Key said his government would adhere to its policy of not paying kidnappers, arguing “it potentially makes the situation worse”.

“Our very strong policy is not to pay ransom,” he told reporters.

“The reason for that is if we pay the ransom we potentially put a bounty on any New Zealander who travels through a dangerous part of the world.”

One witness to the abduction, who asked not to be identified, said the kidnappers took the men to a waiting boat.

Lafarge-Holcim spokesman Viola Graham-Douglas said the company was informed of the incident by Macmahon, which was “working with the security agencies to resolve the situation”.

Macmahon has a US$18mil (RM72mil) per year contract with the United Cement Company of Nigeria Ltd (UniCem) for quarrying operations at UniCem’s cement manufacturing plant at Mfamosing, near Calabar.