TheCable

Six people including, two nursing mothers and their babies, were abducted after gunmen stormed a hotel in Damishi community, Chikun local government area of Kaduna on Wednesday night.

TheCable gathered that the gunmen, numbering more than 30, invaded the community with AK47 rifles.

One of the residents, who simply identified himself as Abraham, told TheCable that the gunmen had earlier stormed the residence of a priest who they did not find at home.

They were said to have proceeded to a hotel in the community — where residents usually take cover amid the insecurity in the area — where they abducted some women and children.

“They went  to the hotel, the gunmen were many, about 30 of them or more. They always come in very large number,” Abraham said.

“They knocked from room to room in the hotel and kidnapped many people, most of them children aged between six and 10.

“After they left with them, they felt that the children were not moving fast enough for them to escape, so they released them and went with six women, including two nursing mothers and their babies.

“Rarely a week passes without somebody being abducted by gunmen in Damishi and neighbouring communities,” he said.

“Some of us were living in Kaduna metropolis, we bought land and built our houses here. But with the current security situation, I have moved my family to our family house in Kaduna pending when I get a place to rent.

“The community has been under siege by bandits for a long time despite the proximity to Kaduna metropolis. Many of us don’t leave in our houses because of fear of the kidnappers.”

Muhammad Jalige, spokesman of the Kaduna state police command, did not immediately respond to enquiries by TheCable.