Bandits kidnap Nigerian soldiers on major highway
Bandits have kidnapped two Nigerian Army personnel on Maiduguri-Damaturu highway, Goni Masari area in Borno.
A wireless message sent by 29 Task Force Brigade and seen by Peoples Gazette stated that the soldiers, identified as Bello Abubakar and Oyediran Adedotun were kidnapped while traveling to Kano, in a civilian vehicle at about 5:07 p.m. on Saturday.
It was reported that passengers in the vehicle alerted the army base in Mainok, having observed the driver’s suspicious behaviour and his familiarity with the bandits.
It was believed that the bandits operated based on information relayed to them by the driver, the signal message said.
Subsequently, troops from the 134 special forces battalion led by the commanding officer were mobilised to the scene, but the bandits had fled the area, seeing that soldiers were mobilised to the general area.
The driver and vehicle were also immediately apprehended and are in the army’s custody.
“The soldiers were on pass when the incident occurred. Liaison with Sect 2 MIB revealed that a SAR operation is being conducted while the driver of the bus in which the soldiers were traveling is suspected to be a prime suspect in the incident due to some indicators. He has been arrested by troops and is undergoing investigation,” the army document stated.
The troops were said to have dominated the Mada/Matari area with no further contact.
Mr Abubakar’s identity card and wallet were found in the vehicle, but the army was unable to discover the whereabouts of the soldiers and other passengers.
The incident came barely two days after a military officer of 16 Brigade, Yenagoa, Abbas Fatai, was shot dead by suspected members of Icelanders cult group.
Mr Fatai was shot dead at about 9:12 p.m. on July 22, at Igbogene Junction in Yenagoa local government area of Bayelsa, where he resided, according to preliminary investigations by the army.
Earlier in April, some gunmen stormed Onipe village along the Ijebu-Ode-Ibadan road in Oluyole local government area of Ibadan, kidnapping one female soldier, Bola Ogunrinde, and two other women.
Mrs Ogunrinde was kidnapped while driving a Toyota RAV-4, with registration number AGL 66 FY in the area.
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
States
Audit stolen PVCs before Osun governorship poll, Yiaga Africa tells INEC
Yiaga Africa said the disruption of PVC distribution and theft of voting materials posed a direct risk to the voting rights of affected residents in the state.
States
NEMA, UNICEF strengthen emergency response in Gombe
NEMA and UNICEF strengthened emergency response through community engagement training in Gombe.
States
My statement was misinterpreted; I told APC supporters to kill Accord Party members with votes: FadahunsiÂ
Mr Fadahunsi said the viral video was deliberately edited to distort his statement.
Economy
TUC backs private sector equity in refineries, rejects outright sale
Mr Osifo said the government should reduce its equity to 49 per cent and allow credible private investors with technical expertise to hold the remaining 51 per cent.
Africa
Obasanjo urges Africa to develop its own democracy model
He said the democratic model adopted by African countries lacked sufficient African context and often failed to meet the continent’s needs.
Economy
Stock market reverses gains as investors lose N1.17 trillion amid sell-offs
Market capitalisation fell by 0.73 per cent from N160.421 trillion to N159.255 trillion, while the All-Share Index (ASI) shed 1,806.18 points to close at 246,723.57.
