10th September, 2020
Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja
The Federal Capital Territory, FCT Police Command said its operatives had rescued five out of the 10 residents of Tungan Maje, a community located in the outskirt of Abuja, kidnapped during an attack on the settlement by yet to be identified gunmen early Thursday morning.
Reports had earlier indicated that the gunmen abducted over 20 residents of the settlement after overpowering the local vigilance group.
But in a statement on Thursday afternoon, spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, Anjuguri Manzah, said 10 persons were abducted from the community.
He also claimed the police successfully rescue five of the abductees from the gunmen.
“The Command wishes to inform the public that when it received a distress call on Kidnap of some persons on 10th September, 2020 at about 0130hrs in Tungan Maje, a village bordering FCT and Niger state, a joint team of Police operatives from the Command Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Rapid Response Squad and Zuba Police Division responded swiftly to the occasion.
“During a fierce gun confrontation with the heavily armed hoodlums, the Police team successfully rescued five of the kidnapped victims.
“Meanwhile, a concerted effort has been deployed to rescue the remaining five victims that are still with the hoodlums who escaped into Niger state through a nearby forest that is surrounded by rocky terrain.
“The Command reassures members of the Public with its commitment to deploy proactive crime-fighting measures to ensure the security of lives and property in FCT.”
“The FCT Police Command wishes to assure the public that protection of lives and property remains the core of its policing mandate and it will continue to inject fresh strategies that will place the security of the Federal Capital Territory at its optimum,” the statement said.