Armed bandits holding retired Major General Rabe Abubakar, a former Director of Defence Information (DDI) and his wife captive, have demanded the release of some of their arrested members and confiscated livestock as conditions for freeing the couple.
The demands were conveyed in a video released by the kidnappers on Saturday, in which the retired Army General appears alongside his wife and appealing to Katsina State government officials to intervene and facilitate their release from captivity.
In the video, General Abubakar’s wife called on Katsina State governor, Dikko Umar Radda, and the chairmen of Matazu, Musawa, Kankia, Charanchi and Kusada Local Government Areas of the State to assist in meeting the kidnappers’ demands.
According to her, the armed group insisted that thir arrested members must be released along with their confiscated cows and goats.
“Three of their boys have been arrested, including Aminu, Sani Nasiru and others, and they want them released alongside all their properties, their cows and goats that were captured as well,” she said in the video.
“We are begging all those concerned to help us heed these demands so we can be released. Two of the boys were captured in Jikamshi and the other one was arrested separately, so we are appealing to the government to please adhere to their demands, release them and release their cows.”
Major General Abubakar and his wife were abducted last Saturday while travelling along the Matazu Highway in Katsina State.
The couple was reportedly ambushed by armed men who intercepted their vehicle and whisked them away to an undisclosed location.
As of the time of filing this report, authorities were yet to issue any official response to the kidnappers’ demands.
