Criminal gangs operating in Nigeria’s northwestern region have captured dozens of community members who attended what they believed would be peace discussions, according to law enforcement and local sources who spoke Monday. The incident underscores the deteriorating safety conditions plaguing the area.
Law enforcement officials report that 39 individuals were taken captive on Sunday during a forest gathering close to Magamin Diddi village within Maradun municipality in northwestern Zamfara State. Local community members and government representatives suggest the actual number of victims may reach 50.
The Zamfara State Police Command issued a statement explaining that those captured had been meeting with family members of a criminal leader, hoping to establish peace agreements and lift movement restrictions that had been placed on their community.
Zamfara sits at the heart of an ongoing security emergency where criminal organizations, known locally as bandits, conduct large-scale abductions, murders and attacks on villages. This violence has interrupted agricultural activities and forced thousands from their homes.
The police statement confirmed that law enforcement agencies have sent officers and intelligence resources to find the missing individuals.
Community members report that several people were freed to deliver the criminals’ financial demands to the village.
Bashar Aliyu, who lives in Magamin Diddi, stated that the criminal organization is seeking 125 million naira ($91,880) to free those who were taken.
Across numerous communities, locals have begun conducting direct negotiations with criminal groups to access their farmland or free kidnapping victims, despite official discouragement of such practices that authorities find difficult to stop.
