Kidnapped Niger LG secretary regains freedom

The Council Chairman of Munya Local Government Area of Niger State, Aminu Najumei, has revealed that the council secretary, Daina Usman, who was abducted on Thursday night, managed to escape from his abductors on Friday.

The council chairman, who made this known on Friday while reacting to news of his council secretary’s abduction, said Usman escaped from his abductors when the bandits were searching for a place to hide them.

Reports revealed that the bandits had on Thursday abducted Usman along with his wife, two children and one other person in a late-night attack in Sarkin Pawa, Niger State.

The attack was said to have occurred around 10 pm when the bandits infiltrated Usman’s residence, located near the riverbank in Sarkin Pawa,

It was, however, gathered that the council secretary escaped when the bandits were trying to take them to a hiding place, leaving his wife and children.

It was gathered that after the secretary and others were abducted, the bandits fled with the hostages into the Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

According to a security source, while Sarkin Pawa, where the victims were abducted, is an area frequently targeted by bandits and terrorists for their attacks, Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State is notorious as a known escape route for criminal elements operating in the area.

It was further gathered that upon receiving a distress call from local vigilantes, security operatives mobilised a joint task force comprising military personnel from the Forward Operating Base, Sarkin Pawa, Niger State Police Tactical Teams, and local vigilante groups on a manhunt for the kidnappers.

The security operatives were said to have followed the trail of the bandits to Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State, where they launched a coordinated search-and-rescue operation to track down the bandits and ensure the safety of the victims.

The spokesman for the Niger State Police Command, Wasiu Abiodun, confirmed the abduction to our correspondent, saying that the council secretary.

He said efforts were ongoing to rescue the remaining victims, saying the efforts for their rescue were in progress.

“He was abducted yesterday around 10 pm, and he was released early this morning around 3 am. Efforts to rescue others are in progress,” Abiodun said in a terse WhatsApp message.