Abuja Kidnapping: How I trekked for 6km — Pregnant Victim

A pregnant housewife, Mrs. Ezeorah Helen, who was among the people kidnapped at Anguwar Samu of Tungan-Maje in Gwagwalada Area Council that was rescued alongside four others has spoken on how she trekked for six kilometres in the bush before she was rescued.

Daily Trust had reported that gunmen suspected to be kidnappers invaded Tungan-Maje in the early hours of Thursday and abducted 11 persons, including a seven-year-old boy, and that five of the victims were rescued after a gun battle between the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the police and the bandits.

Mrs. Helen, while speaking with our reporter in the area yesterday, said the kidnappers came in their large numbers with sophisticated weapons through a bush path after crossing a stream.

She said they forced their door open before her husband sneaked into the bathroom after giving her N8,000 to keep with so that she could give the kidnappers, and that she gave them the N8,000.

She said the gunmen later ordered her and some victims to carry some stolen food items and provision on her head to follow them into the bush and that she trekked for six kilometres before she was rescued with four other victims.

She explained that, “In fact, despite my condition, they forced me to trek alongside other victims with some food stuff on my head for almost six kilometres, and as God will have it, they discovered that I was getting tired and so left me and escaped with five other victims.”

Another victim, Mr. Frank Osas Ovibiyedanwen, whose wife and four children were kidnapped, but were later rescued by the police, while speaking with our reporter, said the kidnappers forced their way into his apartment at about 01:00am on Thursday.

He said the kidnappers who ransacked the house made away with money and his wife, Grace; and his three children.

He further said the vigilante and SARS immediately responded and rescued his wife and two children, but that, “One of my sons, Daniel, who is 14 years old, is still being held by the kidnappers and they have not called for ransom.”

The wife of the kidnapped Pastor of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) in the area, Mrs. Victoria Ajibola, while speaking with our reporter over the incident, said although she was not at home when the kidnappers invaded her home and whisked away her husband, her son called on phone around 02:00am and informed her that armed robbers had invaded their house and whisked away her husband.

She explained that the family was intensifying effort to establish contact with the kidnappers in order ascertain the situation of her husband.

The Youth Leader of Tungan-Maje, Musa Shamsudeen, condemned the attack and urged government to intensify effort to ensure that the remaining kidnapped victims were rescued.

Shamsudeen said bandit attacks in the community were a clear indication that the alleged threat by terrorists to establish new camps close to Abuja was true.

The spokesman of the FCT Police Command, DSP Anjuguri Manza, said the command had been able to rescue five among the kidnapped victims.

DSP Manza said a combined team of special forces and operatives of SARS were already in the forest in an effort to ensure that the remaining victims were rescued unhurt.  (Daily Trust)