Police, military deployed to Niger after kidnapping of over 100 residents - Punch Newspapers

The Niger State Police Command has disclosed that tactical teams of the military and police have been deployed to rescue over 100 Niger State residents abducted by terrorists. The terrorists abducted the victims from Maburya community in the Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State last Saturday night. The terrorists were said to have stormed the community and started shooting sporadically into the air before taking over 100 people away into the forest. PUNCH Online notes that the attack on Maburya community is the latest in a wave of mass abductions across Niger State. Over 500 people were reportedly abducted from Borgu in the New Bussa Local Government Area in August, and up till this moment, the captives are still being held in the terrorists’ den. A security source, who pleaded anonymity, saying he was not permitted to speak on the issue, told this correspondent that the proximity of Mariga LGA to the expansive Kainji Lake National Park and other forest reserves in the state provides a seeming cover for terrorists, making it difficult for security agencies to track and engage them. Anglican bishop urges church leaders to speak against bad governance Police arrest three kidnappers, rescue two victims in Ondo Four cattle rustlers killed as security operatives recover 35 cows in Kwara Another source, a local resident who failed to give his name, said 100 of the Mariga LGA abducted residents were set free by the terrorists this morning, leaving only three others, whom he said the bandits had promised to free as well. However, the police did not confirm the development. The spokesman for the Niger State Police Command, Wasiu Abiodun, in a telephone interview, confirmed the abduction to PUNCH Online on Tuesday but did not confirm the release of the 100 captives by the bandits. “On 13/9/2026 at about 8 pm, a report was received from Bangi Division indicating that suspected bandits invaded Maburya village via Bangi and abducted an unspecified number of victims, later releasing elderly and pregnant women, including nursing mothers, while others were taken away. “Police and military tactical teams have been deployed to the location, while rescue efforts are intensified. Further developments will be made available to the public,” he said. Chika Otuchikere

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