Bandits Abduct 18 in Kaduna Community

By John Shiklam

Bandits have abducted 18 people, including four nursing mothers, in Mando village, Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The incident, according to a statement by the Chairman, Birnin Gwari Emirate Progressive Union (BEPU), Salisu Haruna, occurred on Wednesday night.

He said the bandits, who were armed with AK 47 rifles, raided several houses in search of grains and other food items.

The statement said the bandits went from house to house, looting property and and food items, despite the location of a security outfit about three kilometres away from the community.

“After relative calm along Birnin-Gwari-Funtua road after the sustained onslaught by security forces, we regret to inform the general public of an attack at Mando village, a distance of five kilometres from Birnin-Gwari town.

“In the latest incident, armed bandits attacked Mando shortly after midnight around 1.30 am and abducted eighteen people, including four nursing mothers.

“The armed bandits did a house-to-house search for grains, other food items and property whose value is yet to be quantified.

“The eighteen people abducted include four nursing mothers with their babies and ten able men.

“We are calling on the security personnel, particularly the Air Force Field Base Birnin-Gwari that is just three kilometres to Mando and the governments to be more proactive in protecting lives and property.

“We equally urged our citizens to assist in reporting suspicious elements and their collaborators,” the statement said.

The spokesman of the Kaduna State Police Command, Mohammed Jalige, could not be reached to comment on the incident as his mobile phone was not connecting when contacted.

Kaduna State is one of the states battling with bandits who attack communities, kill and abduct people, almost on a daily basis.