They forced their way into the victims’ home.
Two teenage sisters, aged 16 and 14, were kidnapped on Sunday night from their residence in Guita community, Chikakore, Kubwa, Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The assailants, numbering six, reportedly stormed the community around 11:25 pm despite the presence of police and military in the area. The victims were abducted from their residence, located in the heart of Guita.
Eyewitnesses revealed that the gunmen altered their tactics during the abduction. Instead of firing shots as in previous incidents, they forced their way into the victims’ home.
A source familiar with the incident recounted, “The gunmen changed their approach when they came; they didn’t shoot like before but forced themselves inside. While they were forcing themselves inside, the owner of the house (a Calabar man) ran to the vigilante’s office. By the time he returned with help, the gunmen had vanished. As they were leaving, they started shooting, unlike before when they would shoot before and after the operation.”
The victims, both girls, were taken through the forests and hills in the area. One of the girls, still in her nightgown, was reportedly denied the opportunity to dress for the cold weather. The mother attempted to plead with the kidnappers, but instead, she was assaulted.
Tragically, this incident follows closely on the heels of another horrifying incident where suspected kidnappers killed a nursing mother, Christiana Igba, and her mother, Maria Agbo, after spending two weeks with them in their enclave.
Despite heightened security measures, the gunmen have proven elusive. The vigilantes managed to trace their movements to the railway line and rocks, but all efforts to locate the victims have been in vain.
The distraught father of the kidnapped girls, described as a frontline security proponent and a generous contributor to the community, received a chilling demand from the kidnappers. They sent back one of his sons with a message instructing him to prepare a ransom of 30 million naira for the safe release of his daughters.
