Gunmen have shot dead a truck driver simply identified as Halidu, injured three others and abducted six by a bush in Rudu village in Toto LGA of Nasarawa State.
A relative of the abducted victims, Saidu Adamu, said the incident happened on Monday, when the gunmen opened fire on a truck carrying timber at a forest in Rudu village.
He said the gunmen emerged from the bush, opened fire on the moving truck and the bullet hit the driver.
“When their bullets hit the driver, he was forced to stop while three other labourers sitting on the timber escaped with bullet wounds,” he said.
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He said when the driver jumped from the truck, he tried to escape, but the gunmen opened fire and killed him on the spot.
According to him, the gunmen whisked away six people at gunpoint, saying the three injured were receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in Toto town.
City & Crime learnt that the six people abducted were from Shishin Geneshi village, while the three shot were from neighbouring Shafa-Koto village and the deceased truck driver was from Enyezi community, all in Toto LGA.
Adamu disclosed that contact has been established with the abductors of the victims, who are demanding N20 million ransom.
The chairman of Toto LGA, Alhaji Abdullahi Tashas, confirmed the kidnapping, saying a joint security forces team comprised of police, soldiers and vigilantes had been mobilised into the forest to rescue the victims unhurt.
The spokesman of the Nasarawa State Police Command, while replying to a text message sent to him on the incident, said, “The command has not received any report of such an occurrence; I just found out from the DPO. Good morning.’’
