Five Bethel school kidnap victims get scholarships in Kaduna

Sunday Katung, senator representing Kaduna south senatorial district, has offered scholarships to five victims of the 2021 Bethel Baptist High School abduction in the state.

Katung made the announcement at a fundraising event organised by the Kaduna Baptist Conference for the rebuilding of the school.

The senator pledged to cover the tuition fees of the students to the university through his foundation, the Sunday Marshall Education Foundation.

“My foundation will take full responsibility for their education from now until they graduate,” he said.

Other students abducted during the incident have reportedly graduated.

On July 5, 2021, bandits stormed the school and abducted 121 students.

The victims were released in batches, with the first group of 28 freed on July 25, after a ransom of N100 million was paid.

The bandits later demanded an additional N80 million for the remaining students.

Due to security concerns, the school was temporarily relocated to Kaduna metropolis.

By January 2022, Joseph Hayab, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) chairman for Kaduna, confirmed that 120 of the students had been released.

Treasure Ayuba, the last victim, managed to escape captivity on November 2, 2023.