While on a fighting patrol along the Kaduna Birnin Gwari Road today, 12 January 2022, NAF Special Forces (SF) rescued 26 kidnapped victims.
Director of Public Relations and Information, Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, disclosed this in a press statement earlier today.
According to him, the rescue operation began when NAF Special Forces discovered five abandoned vehicles with their doors ajar near Anguwar Yako, indicating a forced removal or evacuation and possibly a kidnapping scenario.
Acting on instinct, the SF began exploiting the broad scene of the abduction, extending well into the bushes for around 3 kilometers while clearing the general area.
When they saw the SF, roughly 3 captured escapees emerged from the bushes.
According to the statement, the SF’s search led to the discovery of four different groups of victims hiding in the bushes.
A total of 26 victims were rescued after a comprehensive search further into the hinterland. The victims, who were driving from Birnin Gwari Kaduna to, Minna, and Kano, stated that while en route, a huge number of bandits in three groups suddenly came from the bushes from three different directions along the highway and surrounded their vehicles.
When the kidnappers saw NAF Special Forces operatives, they ran into the bushes with a few of the victims, while the rest took cover and hid in the bushes. They came of their hiding places when they saw the SF operatives.
The statement reads;
“Acting on instincts, the SF began exploiting the general scene of the abduction and extended for about 3 kilometres radius well into the bushes while clearing the general area. Upon sighting the SF, about 3 kidnapped escapees suddenly came out from the bushes. Further search by the SF led to the discovery of 4 different groups of victims hiding in the bushes.”
“After a thorough search further into the hinterland, a total of 26 victims were rescued. On interrogation, the victims who were traveling from Birnin Gwari to various locations including Kaduna, Minna and Kano, revealed that while enroute, large number of bandits in 3 groups suddenly appeared from the bushes from 3 different directions along the route and surrounded their vehicles.”
Read full statement HERE.
Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet further disclosed that NAF Special Forces have increased its efforts in the area in the hopes of rescuing the remaining kidnapped victims, while those who have been rescued have been transferred to the 461 NAF Hospital in Kaduna for proper medical examination and treatment.
