The village head of Kurmin Wali in Kajuru LGA of Kaduna state, Ishaku Dan’azumi, has disclosed that 80 worshippers abducted during a recent attack have escaped, while 86 others remain in captivity.
In January, armed men stormed three churches in the community and abducted about 177 worshippers. Eleven of the victims were reported to have escaped while being taken away by the attackers.
Speaking with TheCable, Dan’azumi explained that the 80 worshippers managed to escape on the same day of the incident but could not return immediately after losing their way in the forest.
According to him, the escapees fled into the forest and went into hiding out of fear following the attack.
“We have now confirmed that 80 of our people have been found in different locations. They ran through the forest and hid because of fear on the very day of the incident,” he said.
Dan’azumi added that contact was made a few days ago after one of the victims reached out to the community and revealed their location, leading to the mobilisation of a team to trace them.
“One of them called and told us where they were. We sent people there and confirmed their whereabouts,” he said.
He further explained that the victims delayed reaching out because they feared their village had suffered the same fate as a nearby community that was completely burnt by bandits.
A headcount conducted on Friday, he said, confirmed that the 80 victims were located in different forest settlements. Search teams have also been deployed to other areas of the forest to determine if more victims are still hiding.
The village head noted that the authorities have been formally informed of the development.
“We have informed the government that 80 people have been found. They want us to gather them together, but fear is stopping many of them from returning,” he said.
“However, we have spoken with them and confirmed their locations.”