Police Rescue 14 Kidnap Victims Held Captive by Bandits for 68 Days

The Zamfara Police Command has announced that it recently rescued 14 kidnap victims who had been held captive by bandits for 68 days. The victims included five children who were below the age of two years. SP Mohammed Shehu, who spoke on behalf of the command, said the rescue operation was carried out by the police and vigilante groups while on a mop-up mission near Munhaye forest, where some bandit camps belonging to a notorious bandit kingpin, Dogo Sule, were dislodged.

According to SP Shehu, the rescue operation was successful, and the 14 hostages, consisting of two adult males, seven females, and five children, were rescued. During debriefing, the victims revealed that they were abducted on January 1, 2023, at about 11 pm by a large group of suspected bandits who were armed with sophisticated weapons. The bandits stormed the Anguwar Mangoro and Gidan Maidawa villages in Gusau LGA and whisked the victims away to their camp.

The victims narrated their harrowing experience in captivity, where they had to endure terrible living conditions and maltreatment by their abductors. However, they were relieved to be rescued after spending 68 days in captivity. They were in poor physical condition and have been taken to the Police clinic in Gusau for medical treatment.

After their treatment, the Zamfara Police Command made arrangements to reunite them with their families and relations. The police command reiterated its continuous commitment to protecting the lives and properties of citizens in the state. SP Shehu expressed the CP’s congratulations to the victims for regaining their freedom and reassured citizens of the command’s continuous commitment to protecting their lives and property.

In recent times, Zamfara state has experienced a surge in banditry and kidnapping, leading to the loss of many lives and the destruction of property worth millions of naira. The Nigerian government has deployed security personnel to the region to combat the rising insecurity, but the problem persists. The recent rescue of the 14 kidnap victims by the Zamfara Police Command is a welcome development and a sign that the security operatives are not relenting in their efforts to restore peace and security to the state.