A terrifying night raid has left a Federal Capital Territory community reeling after suspected bandits kidnapped seven young people, including six teenage girls and a 16-year-old boy, in a brazen attack that highlights the escalating security crisis in Nigeria’s capital region.
The armed abduction occurred around 9:47 PM in Gidan-Bijimi, a village in the Kawu ward of Bwari Area Council, when heavily armed attackers wielding AK-47 rifles stormed two separate homes and forcibly took the victims.
The six female victims, aged between 17 and 23, were attending a community funeral when the bandits struck. Local sources describe scenes of panic as families scattered during the invasion, with the kidnappers moving swiftly through the village under cover of darkness.
Gidan-Bijimi sits dangerously close to the Kaduna state border, near Marke village, an area that has increasingly become a hotspot for banditry and kidnapping activities. The proximity to state boundaries often complicates security responses, as criminal elements exploit jurisdictional gaps to evade law enforcement.
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This latest abduction adds to growing concerns about deteriorating security conditions in the FCT, traditionally considered one of Nigeria’s safer regions. Residents in border communities like Gidan-Bijimi now live in constant fear, with bandits growing bolder in their attacks on rural settlements.
Security agencies have yet to release an official statement on rescue efforts or the identities of the suspected kidnappers. Families of the victims are anxiously awaiting news as the clock ticks on this developing crisis.
The incident raises urgent questions about protective measures for vulnerable communities on the outskirts of Abuja and whether current security strategies are adequate to confront the escalating banditry threatening lives across Nigeria’s capital territory.
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