The district head of Kanya in the Danko Wasagu area of Kebbi State, Alhaji Isah Daya, has been confirmed dead after being kidnapped by bandits on Sunday night.
He was abducted along with eight other individuals from his community.
Despite a rescue operation by a joint security team of soldiers, police, civil defence, and vigilantes, Alhaji Daya succumbed to a head injury inflicted by his captors.
The Director of Security at the Cabinet Office, AbdurRahman Usman Zaga, confirmed that the security team engaged the bandits in a gunfight, successfully rescuing the eight other hostages.
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The rescued victims have been identified as Almustapha Almu, Hajara S. Maikano, Rukayya Isah Daya, Bello Isa Daya, Fa’iza Maikano, Amina Maikano, and Jidah Babangida.
SP Nafiu Abubakar, the police spokesman, confirmed the death of the district head.
Abubakar, in a statement, explained that bandits engaged a joint security team, including the army, police, and local vigilantes, in a gun battle in the Sakaba forest, where the victims were held captive.
Regrettably, during the ongoing search and rescue operation, the lifeless body of Alhaji Isah Daya was discovered in the forest, he said.
He, however, said eight other victims, who were rescued, had reunited with their families.
Abubakar has urged the public to provide any relevant information that could help in apprehending those responsible for the district head’s death.
The death of Alhaji Isah Daya in the hands of kidnappers came just over a month after the tragic murder of another prominent figure, Alhaji Isa Muhammad Bawa, the Sarkin Gobir and District Head of Gatawa in Sokoto State.
Bawa was kidnapped on July 27, 2024, alongside his son, Kabiru Isa, while returning from a meeting at the Sultanate palace in Sokoto.
In a heartbreaking video released by his abductors shortly before his death, the 74-year-old traditional ruler, visibly distressed and in blood-stained clothes, with his hands tied behind his back, pleaded for help from the government and the public, expressing fear that the day the video was shown might be his last.
The abductors of the district head had initially demanded a ransom of N500 million but later reduced it to N100 million after a bargain with members of his family.
Despite these efforts, he ultimately fell victim to the brutality of his captors.
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