Police rescue nine kidnapping victims in Katsina; two remain missing.

Nine victims abducted by kidnappers along the Katsina‑Kankara highway have been rescued by operatives of the Katsina State Police Command, while efforts continue to locate two others who remain missing.

Security operatives responded to a distress call and carried out the rescue after a kidnapping incident that occurred on Friday at Tashar Kanya Village in Kankara Local Government Area of the state.

DSP Abubakar Sadiq Aliyu, the command’s spokesman, said the incident took place at about 2:30 pm when armed bandits blocked the Katsina‑Kankara Road and intercepted a red commercial Volkswagen Golf III saloon car with registration number KMC 400 MK.

He added, “The vehicle, driven by a 40‑year‑old man identified as Aliyu, popularly known as Maitakabari, was conveying 11 passengers from Dandume to Katsina when the gunmen abducted all the occupants.”

Upon receiving the distress report, Aliyu said the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Kankara immediately mobilised a team of operatives, including personnel from the Violent Crime Rescue Unit (VCRU), to the scene. They reportedly engaged the bandits in a fierce gun duel, forcing the attackers to abandon the victims and flee into the surrounding bush because of the police team’s superior firepower and tactical manoeuvres.

During a subsequent search of the area, he said operatives successfully rescued nine victims unharmed. The rescued persons were identified as Abubakar Ibrahim, 28; Rakiya Ya’u, 30; Shamsiya Ahmad Mahamud, 18; Jumai Majarazu, 20; Salamatu Adamu, 30; Yusuf Halliru, 17; Harira Hamisu, 25; Umma Kabir, 17; and three‑year‑old Nusaiba Maharazu.

Aliyu stated that two persons, Buhari Kabir and the driver, Aliyu “Maitakabari,” are still missing, adding that a search‑and‑rescue operation is ongoing to ensure their safe recovery and the arrest of the fleeing suspects.

The Commissioner of Police, Katsina State Command, Ali Umar Fage, reaffirmed the command’s commitment to combating criminal activity across the state while commending the professionalism displayed by the operatives.

He assured residents that the police would continue to intensify efforts to rid Katsina State of criminal elements and urged members of the public to support security agencies with timely and credible information.