Abducted residents of the Dawaki area in Abuja are still in the hands of their kidnappers, The Guardian has learned.
A resident of the area who confided in The Guardian noted, “The kidnap victims have not been released. They are still being held. It happened in my area.”
In a new wave of kidnappings in the Federal Capital Territory, no fewer than 20 residents of Dawaki, a community near Kubwa, were reportedly abducted.
Before security personnel responded to distress calls, the kidnappers reportedly raided houses on Frank Opara Street in the community.
The Chairman of Dawaki Rock Heaven Community, Mr. Tunde Abdulrahim, said in a statement on Monday that the incident happened at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Abdulrahim said the armed men, numbering about 50, invaded the community and broke into about six houses.
In response to the incident, SP Josephine Adeh, the spokesperson for the FCT police command, said Police Commissioner Benneth Igweh immediately led policemen to the scene and engaged the kidnappers in a gun battle. She insisted that the kidnapping was foiled.
The Federal Capital Territory has again been gripped with apprehension after the killing of a Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) staff member and the kidnapping of 13 persons in Piko, a remote community in the Bwari Area Council of Abuja, two weeks ago.
The attack in Bwari occurred on Sunday night, May 5, 2024, at around 11 p.m., without any challenge from security agencies or the vigilante group.
Just a few days after the Bwari attack, unknown gunmen, whom police tagged assassins, murdered a Federal Inland Revenue Service staff member, Khalid Bichi.
Bichi was reportedly murdered in highbrow Maitama. His killing sent shivers down the spines of residents of that area. It is well known that top officials in Abuja, senior government officials, some senators, and the Inspector General of Police live in Maitama.
Findings revealed that Khalid Bichi was shot multiple times by his assailants at around 9:00 p.m. when he stepped out to get some food.
The late Khalid, who was rushed to the General Hospital in Maitama, was reportedly confirmed ‘brought in dead’ (BiD).
The Dawaki raid by kidnappers is the third in the last three weeks.
The widespread and unreported cases of insecurity around the outskirts, characterised by frequent and indiscriminate kidnappings in the past few weeks, are becoming worrisome.
