Police Rescue 9 Abducted Officers

21 Nov Police Rescue 9 Abducted Officers

The Nigeria Police Force on Friday said the nine police officers abducted between Kankara town and Sheme in Katsina State on November 8, have been successfully rescued.

The Force Public Relations Officer, DCP Frank Mba said in a statement that “the night commercial bus they were travelling in came under attack by heavily armed men, all dressed in Military Camouflage, but suspected to be bandits.”

“The officers, all Assistant Superintendents of Police (ASPs), were on their way to Gusau in Zamfara State from Maiduguri at the time of the incident.

“Two of the officers are currently receiving medical attention in a hospital, while the remaining seven are being debriefed.

The statement further said that “covert operation to locate and rescue the officers commenced immediately they were discovered missing en-route to their destination.

“Thus, the apparent delay in commenting on the unfortunate incident was a deliberate decision aimed at protecting the integrity and confidentiality of the rescue operation and the concomitant safety of the officers.

“It is also important to state that preliminary investigation has shown that the attack on the vehicle was an opportunistic crime as the officers were all travelling in mufti, unarmed and alongside other private citizens in the commercial vehicle.

“The total number of officers involved in the incident is nine (9) and not twelve (12) as previously, wrongly reported in some sections of the media. Follow-up investigation into the incident is still ongoing.”