In addition to rescuing no less than 76 kidnapped travelers, the Kaduna State Police Command has reported the destruction of a roadblock erected by bandits on the Funtua-Zaria route at Gulbala in the state’s Giwa Local Government Area.
In a statement released on Monday, the Command’s spokesman, Mohammed Jalige, said that the military and the police worked together to achieve the breakthrough.
Jalige claims that troops are still searching the general region for the primary truck driver and two other passengers who have not yet been located.
The police spokesman said, “On the 18th November 2022 at about 2300hrs, report was received at the Police Divisional Headquarters, Giwa, that a large number of bandits wielding sophisticated weapons blocked a section of Funtua-Zaria Road at Gulbala area of Giwa Local Government Area to conummate their evil mission of abducting innocent commuters.
“On the strength of the report, a combined team of Police and Military were immediately mobilised to the location with clear directives to dismantle the road blockade, root out the armed miscreants, and rescue any victim they may have abducted.
“On reaching the location, a Ford open truck with Reg. No. APP 667 XG was found and information garnered had it that a large number of passengers on the truck had been moved off the road by the bandits.
“This development engendered an immediate search and rescue operation by the operatives into the adjourning forest. In the process of this, the bandits were encountered and by the sheer force of firepower pressure mounted on them by the security operatives, they were left with no option but to abort their nefarious mission and take to flight with injuries.
“Thorough combing of the forest over several hours by the crack operatives succeeded in the rescue of a large number of victims totalling Seventy Six (76) comprising male and females of different ages.
“Preliminary investigation revealed that the victims, who were passengers in the truck, were travelling from the Sabon Birni LGA of Sokoto State en-route different destinations when they were intercepted by the marauders. Operatives are still on operation within the general area in search of the main truck driver and two other passengers who are yet to be accounted for.”
Yekini Ayoku, the state’s commissioner of police, was described as praising the inter-service coordination and cooperation of the state’s security services in their efforts to flush out the criminals.
In light of attempts to purge the state of bandits and other criminal groups, he is reported to have promised that such cooperation with sister security services will be maintained.
“The Commissioner of Police, Kaduna State Command, Yekini A. Ayoku, while noting this important breakthrough that was actualised through the vehicle of strong inter-service coordination and collaboration emplaced in Kaduna State, has assured that this will continue to be strengthened between and among all the agencies to extricate the public space from the enemies of our collective security,” the statement added.
