Troops of the 33 Artillery Brigade Headquarters of the Nigerian Army in Bauchi, have killed two suspected kidnappers and rescued a 16-year-old boy in Rafin Gigi village, Alkaleri Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The teenager, who was kidnapped last Friday, was rescued after a heavy gun battle between the troops and his abductors.
Platoon Commander of the troops, Captain Harrison Chiagozie, while presenting the rescued boy before newsmen at the Brigade headquarters on Wednesday in Bauchi, said the cash sum of N770,000 was recovered from the kidnappers.
Chiagozie disclosed that the suspected kidnappers had demanded a ransom of N1.6m from the family, but the family was able to raise N770,000.
According to the Platoon Commander, “We got a report of the kidnap of the boy, Muhammad Musa, on Saturday and immediately, we swung into action.
“When we got to the bush, it was around 10pm and as soon as the family exchanged the N770,000 they had with them and took their son, our men who were hiding came out.
“An exchange of fire ensued between us and the kidnappers and we killed two of them while the others escaped. There was no casualty on our side.
“They used torchlight to know where we were because it was very dark. And our aim was to rescue the boy alive.”
An uncle of the victim, Ali Umar, while commenting on the abduction, said the miscreants left a letter after picking the boy, adding that prior to the rescue, he was in touch with one of the kidnappers.
“I have been the one speaking with the kidnappers. They demanded the sum of N1.6m from the family before the boy would be released to us; but we were only able to raise the sum of N770,000 and even that was borrowed,” he said.
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