Thirteen children who were abducted by suspected bandits in the Katari area of Kaduna on January 6, 2024, have spent 23 days in captivity.

Recall that the bandits reportedly killed a 53-year-old baker, Mr Tijani Amedu, and abducted his 13 relatives, who are mainly children and were travelling alongside him, in the Katari area of the State.

Following up on the incident, the deceased brother, Rasaq, when asked about the children, said, “They are still with the kidnappers”, noting that the Police had done nothing regarding the incident.

Narrating his ordeal, Rasaq said, “They came to visit for the Christmas and New Year holidays. But they got attacked by bandits when they were going back to Kaduna, using two buses. I was told the bandits started shooting on seeing them. The first bus drove through them but the second bus stopped. My elder brother and the 13 kids were on the second bus. The bandits took all of them.”

He said the family members later got to know when the children started communicating from their captivity.

According to the family, the kidnappers are requesting N50m after negotiating from N200m.

He said, “My elder brother’s head was hit and he fell (leading to his death),” according to the information given to him by the children, adding, “They started (the ransom) negotiation from N200m, but now, we’re at N50m.”

Zinab, the wife of Amedu, who confirmed her husband was killed said the family was seeking help and prayers on the matter.

She said, “They killed my husband and they went away with 13 children” adding that the family was seeking “prayers and help from anybody who can help. We have 13 of our children with them.”

The Kaduna State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Mansur Hassan, when contacted on Sunday, January 28, 2024, over the incident, said the command would investigate and “get back”.

“We will investigate and get back to you.” However, he had yet to get back as of the time of filing this report.