Fifteen more abducted students of Bethel Baptist Secondary School in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna state have regained their freedom. Although the government or security agencies are yet to confirm the development, a source in the school said that the 15 students were released on Sunday after a ransom was paid to the bandits.
Bandits suspected to be kidnappers had on July 5 attacked the school and took away 121 students from their hostels. The bandits released 28 of them on July 25, after a ransom was allegedly paid to the kidnappers. The rest managed to escape from the captors between July 22 and August 3.
The release of the 15 students brings the total number of those freed so far to 56 while 65 others are still in captivity. Kidnapping for ransom has become a normal practice for bandits to extort money from innocent residents in Kaduna and other states in the North West, as well as Niger in the north-central region.
In the last one year, bandits have attacked many communities in the region, with a lot of people killed and hundreds abducted.
