Former Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the late Kaduna State governor, Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, Reuben Buhari, has alleged that a young girl abducted by bandits died of extreme hunger after spending 76 days in captivity.
Buhari said the girl, who was among 11 residents abducted from Awon village in Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State, reportedly died in her mother’s arms while being held by the kidnappers.
In a Facebook post on Saturday, Buhari alleged that the abductors demanded N300 million and 25 motorcycles as ransom for the victims’ release, rejecting an offer of several millions of naira made by the community.
According to him, residents are now pleading with the kidnappers to release the girl’s body for burial.
“After 76 days in the kidnappers’ hands, we received a call yesterday that one of the victims, a little girl, is dead. She died of extreme hunger. She was among the 11 kidnapped from Awon village, Kachia LGA, including her mother.
“The kidnappers have been demanding N300 million and 25 motorcycles. The community offered some millions, but the bandits rejected it and insisted on the N300 million. Last week, the bandits told us that none of the 11 captives would have access to any food, only water, unless the amount was brought,” Buhari wrote.
He further alleged that the captives were taken once daily to a nearby stream to drink water before being escorted back to the camp.
“They said that once a day, they would be led to a small stream close by to drink water and then escorted back. The four children among the 11 were the hardest hit. After drinking only water for days, they had been crying consistently. It was reported that the little girl kept crying from hunger until she fell silent. She died in her mother’s arms. We are currently begging them to give us the body for burial,” he added.
Efforts to confirm the incident with the Kaduna State Police Command were unsuccessful. The Command’s spokesperson, DSP Mansir Hassan, did not respond to telephone calls as of the time of filing this report.
