Twenty victims have been kidnapped by gunmen in military uniforms, who invaded Dawaki community in Abuja.
According to Daily Trust, witnesses described it as yet another daring onslaught by the attackers, referring to them variously as bandits, armed robbers, terrorists, and other names.
Dawaki, home to thousands of workers in the FCT, situated along the Abuja-Kubwa Expressway, directly across from Gwarinpa Estate, Nigeria’s largest single organized settlement.
The gunmen, armed with various types of weapons, stormed Dawaki around 7:30 pm on Sunday and operated until about 8:30 pm.
The incident occurred shortly after kidnappers attacked Shagari Quarters in Dei-Dei, approximately five kilometers away on the same Abuja-Kubwa Expressway, and abducted a Customs officer’s family.
A Dawaki resident, Hosea Christopher, told the newspaper that bandits abducted 17 people from three houses and a street near Fulani Junction, but five escaped while being taken to a mountain on the outskirts, and the bandits were later confronted by DSS operatives near the Usuma Dam forest.
“They immediately opened fire on the security men, but there was corresponding response. Despite the fierce offensive by the DSS operatives, the bandits were able to escape,” he said.
A resident who escaped abduction, Abel James, also said, “The attackers wore uniforms and had face masks.
“But I doubted their genuineness when they started shooting sporadically. As they moved towards the community, I headed into a house under construction and climbed upstairs from where I kept looking at their operation, with gunshots as they were leaving towards the hill.
“We later learnt that two of the gunmen were captured by the security men that included DSS and soldiers who joined them later around the Usuma Dam, where the fire exchange took place.”
The FCT Commissioner of Police, Benneth Igweh, confirmed the incident on Monday, noting that he led the rescue operation on Sunday in the Ushafa-Shishipe area through the Mpape hills.
He mentioned that the operation was initiated in response to a distress call following an attack on Dawaki residents by gunmen.
“We advanced towards the assailants, tactically ambushing them at Ushafa Hill via Bwari down to Shishipe, resulting in a fierce gun battle with the hoodlums, which forced them to flee with bullet wounds, and we rescued some of the abducted victims,” Igweh said.
Additionally, the CP stated that the rescued victims were currently receiving medical attention in the hospital.
