Pregnant woman, two minors abducted in Kaduna

A pregnant woman simply identified as “Mrs. Okeke” and two minors have been abducted in Juji, Chikun local government area of Kaduna state.

The incident happened less than 24 hours after Nasir el-Rufai, , governor of Kaduna, said security operatives have brought kidnapping and other crimes in the state under control.

Gunmen, numbering about 20, reportedly stormed Juji around 1am on Friday. A witness said immediately they got to the community, they started shooting sporadically in the air.

The gunmen were said to have immediately headed for the residence of the pregnant woman, who is a mother of three.

A 12-year-old boy, whose mother is recuperating from injuries she sustained from a motorcycle accident, was also abducted.

The suspected kidnappers had also captured the boy’s mother but they left her alone in the bush when she could not cope with trekking following injuries from the accident.

The woman was said to have returned to the community on Friday morning.

A 9-year-old girl was also abducted.

Commenting on the incident, a witness said: “We heard shots around 1:00 am and all of us ran in different directions. I ran to a nearby bush and hid until they left before I came out. It was this morning that we discovered that they left with the nine year old girl and the son of the woman who was abandoned but was able to find her way back to Juji this morning.”

When contacted, Yakubu Sabo, spokesman of the Kaduna police command, said he learnt there was an incident in the area but he could not provide details.