Breaking: Panic As Armed Bandits Storm Abuja Community, Abduct Residents.
A sense of panic has taken hold in the Gidan-Bijimi community of Kawu ward, located in the Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), following the abduction of seven young people by a group of armed men.
The incident, which took place on Wednesday night, saw the attackers seize six girls and one 16-year-old boy from their homes. According to a local resident, Suleiman Shuaibu, who spoke with Daily Trust on Thursday, the assailants, armed with AK-47 rifles, carried out the raid amid the sound of sporadic gunfire.
Shuaibu described a scene of chaos and helplessness. He explained that the bandits targeted two specific houses in the community. Local vigilante groups attempted to confront the attackers but had to retreat when they were overpowered by the bandits’ superior weapons.
“It was around 9:53 pm when a call came from Gidan-Bijimi community that some bandits invaded the village and abducted six young girls. Unfortunately, my cousin sister happened to be among the victims,” Shuaibu said.
He added that the abducted girls are between 17 and 23 years old. Since the attack, many residents, fearing for their safety, have chosen to leave their homes. Shuaibu also mentioned that no one has been able to make contact with the kidnappers to ascertain the condition of the captives or their demands.
At the time this report was filed, the FCT police spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, had not responded to calls or text messages seeking confirmation and details about the incident.
This attack in the north-central region of Nigeria comes at a time when authorities have been discussing the need for improved security measures. In a related development, President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday evening, declared a security emergency and gave directives for the army and police to increase their personnel numbers.
Security experts point to the economic motive behind such kidnappings. Bulama Bukarti, a Nigerian human rights lawyer and security analyst based in London, explained to Al Jazeera that these gangs operate primarily for financial gain.
READ: Kaduna Anglican Priest Abducted from Home Dies in Captivity
“What these gangs do normally is to keep these children in captivity for weeks, sometimes months, and extort ransoms from either their families or from the government,” Bukarti said. “These ransoms can run into hundreds of dollars, hundreds of thousands of dollars before releasing them.”
For the residents of Gidan-Bijimi, the immediate concern remains the safe return of their children, as their community joins a growing list of areas affected by this troubling trend.
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