Twenty-nine FCT villagers who were recently abducted by gunmen and 28 other victims have been rescued by a team of policemen and vigilantes in Sadauna Forest in Koton Karfe LGA of Kogi State.
City & Crime had reported that kidnappers on April 24, 2023, invaded Yewuti village, hometown of a former Vice Chairman of Kwali Area Council of the FCT, Alhaji Zubairu Jibrin Yewuti, and abducted 29 residents that comprised of women, men and children.
Two days later, the kidnappers reportedly demanded N40m as ransom for the victims.
The Commander of the anti-kidnap team of the FCT Police Command, SP Mustapha Mohammed, who led the operation, disclosed this while handing over the victims on behalf of the FCT Commissioner of Police (CP), Haruna Garba, to the Chairman of Kwali Area Council, Danladi Chiya, on the premises of the council’s secretariat on Friday evening.
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He explained that the joint operation was carried out between Wednesday and Friday morning in Sadauna Forest on the border with Toto LGA of Nasarawa State.
He said the joint team after locating the kidnappers’ den engaged them in a fierce gun duel that led to the rescue of the victims.
SP Mustapha, while giving the breakdown of the abducted victims, said 29 were from Yewuti, Kwali Area Council; 12 from Gaiye, seven from Pavu and eight from Kusada villages in Kuje Area Council.
The Kwali Area Council Chairman, Mr Chiya, appreciated the vigilantes, the police and other security agents for their efforts to rescue the victims.
He thanked the two FCT ministers, the FCT CP, the commanders of vigilantes for their efforts in rescuing the victims.
Also speaking, the Etsu Wako, HRH Alhaji Abdulazeez D. Usman, said the rescue had brought relief to him and his people.
