The Katsina State Police Command has said it foiled a kidnapping attempt and successfully rescued seven victims in Kankara Council of the state.

A statement by spokesperson for the command, DSP Abubakar Aliyu, said the incident occured on September 21, at about 9:45pm.

Aliyu said a distress call was received that suspected armed bandits had blocked a point from Kankara to Dutsin-Ma Road, including intercepting a vehicle conveying six passengers.

He said the Police upon receipt of the report, moved to the scene, intercepted the bandits and engaged them in a gun duel, which forced the bandits to flee the area.

He said the six passengers as well as the driver of the vehicle were rescued during the operation and have been reunited with their family members.

According to Aliyu, On September 21, 2026, at about 9:45 pm, a distress call was received at Kankara Division reporting that a syndicate of suspected armed bandits had blocked a point from the Kankara to Dutsin-Ma road by Unguwar Kanawa-Dantudu village and intercepted a Volkswagen Golf 3 motor vehicle with Registration No. BCH 58 SB, driven by one Sani Umar, age 35, conveying six passengers to Dutsin-Ma LGA from Kaduna State.

Upon receipt of the report, the DPO Kankara Division swiftly led operatives of the Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU) to the scene. The team tactically traced and intercepted the bandits and engaged them in a fierce gun duel, compelling the bandits to flee the scene.

During the operation, all seven occupants of the motor vehicle, comprising the driver and six passengers, were successfully rescued unhurt.

The victims are Sani Umar, aged 35 years (Driver); Emmanuela Anyaba, aged 20 years; Regina Felix, aged 19 years; Peace Joseph, aged 23 years; Mercy Michael, aged 19 years; Maryam Salisu, aged 21 years; and Nafisa Yakubu, aged 18 years.

The victims were immediately taken to the nearest hospital for medical evaluation and were subsequently certified stable and discharged.

The Commissioner of Police, Katsina State Command, CP Ali Fage, commended the gallantry especially the prompt response of the operatives. He assured members of the public of the Command’s commitment to ensuring the safety and security of all residents.

He urged the public to continue to support the command with timely and credible information for prompt and decisive action against all forms of crime and criminality.

He said rare earth elements were not necessarily rare in the ground but were rare in the market because bringing them to market required significant capital and technology.

He, therefore, urged Nigeria to present commercially viable transactions to investors rather than rely on policy documents and promotional presentations.

Wunti said private capital would be needed to finance most critical mineral projects, while the government should focus on reducing investment risks associated with geological uncertainty, unpredictable regulation, inadequate infrastructure and inefficient permitting.

He, however, noted that the government could make a project bankable but could not permanently make an uneconomic project profitable.

The WEC Nigeria chief identified four conditions necessary to attract sustainable investment into the sector: JORC-compliant geological data, commercially viable prices, a stable and competitive fiscal system, and credible buyers.

Wunti said the key lesson was the importance of price, adding that a price floor of $110 per kilogramme could provide investors with commercial certainty, attract processing facilities, create jobs and enable Nigeria to retain greater value from its mineral resources.