TheCable

Gunmen have abducted Peter Breunij, a German professor of archaeology, and Johannes Buringer, his colleague, at Jenjela village in Kagarko local government area of Kaduna state.

Kagarko, which shares a boundary with federal capital territory (FCT), has recorded different cases of kidnapping along the area in recent times.

Breunij is said to be the leader of a four-man team from the University of Frankfurt, Germany, working in collaboration ‎with the National Commission for Museum and Monuments and other institutions on the relics of Nok culture in Nigeria.

A witness said the kidnappers left two ladies who were with the victims during the time of their abduction.

A witness, who was part of the team working with Germans, narrated how the incident happened.

“They started coming one by one, the first two came with machetes, then others came with heavy guns,” he said.

“There were many people at the site who were working at the time, so they ordered us to lay face down and started shooting into the air in order to scare people.

“It was at that point that they asked the professor and his associate to follow them and they led them to the other side of the road.

“They made them to cross the road to the other side from where we were and began to lead them further into the bush.”

The witness said moments after the abductors crossed to the other side of the road with their victims, members of the community regrouped to chase them, but that a hunter was killed in the process.

“One of us who is a hunter suggested that we go after them, but only one of us agreed and the two of them crossed the road, chasing the gunmen,” he said.

“When the kidnappers realised that the two men were following them, they turned and opened fire, killing the hunter and the other man.”

Aliyu Usman, spokesman of the Kaduna state police command, could not be immediately confirm the incident when contacted, saying he would get back.

He did not call back at the time of filing this report.