Fulani Bandits
Bandits demand N30 m for abducted Katsina farm girls
Marauding bandits laying siege in the northwestern parts of the country have abducted some 22 children on whom they have slammed N30 million ransom.
The number of abducted children who are mainly underage girls remain uncertain but police records showed that at least 22 children were missing after the bandits raided a farm and whisked away children who were harvesting produce in Katsina State.
Witnesses said the bandits who moved in large convoy of motorcycles took the children unchallenged, adding that no rescue plan was immediately in place.
They said similar cases of mass kidnap from farms had led to loss of lives if ransoms were not paid as demanded by the bandits who appear to now operate freely and enjoy some level of political support from the local people.
Police spokesman for Katsina Gambo Isah confirmed the abduction of the children but did not give details. But residents said that the children were taken on Sunday while harvesting crops at a farm located between Kamfanin Mailafiya and Kurmin Doka villages in Katsina.
A parent whose son was among those kidnapped said 30 children were abducted but that at least two escaped while another one was released because she was sick.
“Only four of the children are boys, the rest are girls aged below fourteen (years),” he explained.
