Bandits kill 2, abduct 7 in Katsina, Kaduna

Bandits have killed a lecturer at the Federal University, Dutsinma (FUDMA) in Katsina State, Dr Tiri Gyan David and the first son of a doctor in Kaduna.

The lecturer was killed in the early hours of Tuesday, while the Kaduna incident happened since June 23.

Dr David, who was the head of the Department of Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development, was attacked at his residence in the Yarima Quarters, Low-Cost Estate, Dutsinma Local Government Area.

A resident reported that the assailants also abducted two of Dr David’s children. The attack occurred around 1:30 am, with the bandits using sophisticated weapons and shooting sporadically to scare the residents.

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The spokesman for the Katsina police command, Abubakar Sadiq Aliyu, confirmed the incident, stating that the command would release a detailed statement soon.

This incident follows a previous kidnapping, where some off-campus students of the university were abducted and later released after negotiations.

In a related development, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Kaduna State chapter, has raised the alarm following the abduction of the wife and four children of one of its members.

According to a statement issued on Tuesday by Dr Shuaibu Joga Joga, NMA’s public relations officer for Kaduna State, the incident occurred on June 23 while the husband of the victims was away in Kano for an official assignment.

Dr Joga disclosed that the abductors demanded a ransom of N300 million. He also revealed that the first son was killed by the kidnappers to pressurise the family into paying the ransom.

The NMA urged the authorities to expedite efforts to secure the immediate release of the remaining captives. They also highlighted the plight of another doctor who has been kidnapped for six months.

Bandit killed as villagers fight kidnappers

Villagers at Rugar Sojidi, a Fulani settlement near Issan Makaranta in Kagarko Local Government Area, have successfully neutralised one of the bandits who stormed their community to abduct residents.

The bandits had initially kidnapped three persons before the villagers resisted.

According to a statement by the police spokesperson in Kaduna, Mansir Hassan on Tuesday, all the three kidnap victims were rescued.

The incident occurred on July 2, 2024 at approximately 0130 hours.

ASP Hassan explained that police operatives in Jere received information from a reliable informant about the armed bandits’ invasion at Rugar Sojidi. He said a team of police operatives was promptly mobilised to the scene, and upon arrival, they discovered that local inhabitants had resisted the bandits and successfully neutralised one of them.

Similarly, on the same date at 0130 hours, Makarfi divisional patrol team, in collaboration with local vigilantes, successfully foiled an armed robbery along the Kano-Zaria road.

He said the patrol team encountered armed robbers and suspected cattle rustlers who had blocked the road with logs of wood and stones.

He said a shootout ensued and the superior firepower of the police patrol team forced the criminals to flee into the surrounding bushes, abandoning their blue Gulf vehicle with registration number, APP 166 DG.