Several Traditional rulers in Katsina State have commended the military, Police, Department of State Services, DSS, and local vigilante groups for foiling another attempt by armed bandits to carry out a mass abduction in Bakori Local Government Area of the state.
The state Government had, penultimate week, hailed security agencies for foiling a mass abduction at Gidan Iyado, Kakumi Ward, in the same local government area.
The state government said 18 bandits were killed by a combined security team of the military, DSS and Community Watch Corps.
Speaking on Thursday, the district head of a major town in Bakori Local Government Area thanked the security agencies and local vigilantes for foiling another mass abduction in the area.
He attributed the development to continued collaboration among security agencies, traditional institutions and local communities, which he said had helped prevent criminal elements from attacking farming communities in the area.
Another district head said armed bandits, allegedly led by one Rabiu and operating from the camp of Alhaji Musa Duki in Mununu Forest, Faskari Local Government Area of Katsina State, attempted to abduct residents of Unguwan Hudu village in Kakumi Ward, Bakori Local Government Area.
The traditional ruler said the attempt was thwarted following intelligence received by the DSS, which prompted security operatives to block the bandits’ route.
MUST READ: Audu Amba Secures Second Term As Nigeria Union Of Teachers President
According to him, the bandits apparently detected that security operatives had cordoned off their route to the town, forcing them to abort the mission and flee.
He said the bandits abandoned 18 kidnap victims already in their custody, comprising 14 females and four males, including children and toddlers.
The traditional ruler said blood trails found along the bandits’ escape route suggested that at least seven of the fleeing bandits sustained gunshot injuries.
He added that one of the rescued victims, 14 year old Zainab Ashiru, also sustained a gunshot injury and was admitted to the General Hospital, Bakori.
The Thursday operation came less than two weeks after security forces foiled an attempt by bandits to kidnap residents of Gidan Iyado, Kakumi Ward, in the same Bakori Local Government Area.
One of the traditional rulers described the string of successful operations as an indication that the tide was turning against the criminal groups.
He attributed the development to growing collaboration between security agencies and community based security groups in disrupting the activities of criminal elements operating across communities in Katsina State.
(Follow AIT News on WhatsApp, AfricaIndependentTV on YouTube, ait_online on Facebook and X (Formerly Twitter), and officialait on TikTok, Instagram and Threads)
(Editor: Anoyoyo Ogiagboviogie)
