Eight kidnapped Nasarawa varsity students regain freedom

The eight students of the Federal University of Lafia, Nasarawa State, kidnapped by some criminals have regained their freedom.

Daily Trust had reported that gunmen on the night of December 6, 2023 stormed the Gandu community and kidnapped some students of the institution who lived outside the campus.

Confirming the release of the students to our correspondent on Monday, a community leader in the Keana Local Government Area, the state Mr Spencer Jerry, said the students arrived in Kwarra village at about 8pm on Sunday.

According to him, the students who looked pale and exhausted, had been taken to Lafia by police operatives attached to the anti-kidnapping unit. He said the community offered them food before they left.

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Also confirming the release of the students, the District Head of Gandu community, located opposite the university, Abdullahi Mohammed, told our correspondent that they had been moved to the school medical centre for checkup.

He also appealed to the state government to ensure that security agencies investigate, arrest and prosecute those causing unrest in the university community and the state at large.

However, when our correspondent contacted DSP Rahman Nansel, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, on the telephone to confirm the release of the students, he said the command was not in the know of how the students were abducted and subsequently released by their abductors.

He stated, “The community did not inform the command when the incident happened. Up till this moment, nothing of such occurred. We have not received any report of the kidnapping.”

The Head of Information and Public Relations of the university, Mr Abubakar Ibrahim, who also confirmed the release of the students, revealed that the eight students were released around 8pm on Sunday.

He added that all the students had been reunited with their families after medical examination and counselling.

He stated further that the institution, in conjunction with the state government, would ensure that security was beefed up in and around the university to avert a recurrence of the incident.