The gunmen that attacked the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) church in Dankade village, in Igabi Local Government of Kaduna state on Sunday and abducted 15 persons have reached out to the church.
The gunmen had invaded the church in the community and abducted the pastor of the church, Rev. Zachariya Ido, his daughter and 13 others.
Head of the Zaria diocese of the church, Rev. Nathan Waziri, told our correspondent that the gunmen had called certain members of the church in what seemed like an attempt to establish a line of communication but did not make any demand.
“I’ll say they have made a partial contact through one of our members but they have not said anything yet,” he stated.
When contacted, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Yakubu Sabo, confirmed the report but said it happened in Akilu (not Dankade) village, a settlement between Kaduna and Katsina states through Dogon Dawa near Birnin Gwari.
He said the police received information that 5 men and 10 women were abducted during a church service on Sunday and “we quickly deployed security operatives for search and rescue.”
He added that the operation is ongoing with the technical team from the Inspector General of Police’s office to assist in the operation.