On Monday, the day after they were set free by the military, more than one hundred Nigerian staff members and students who had been abducted this month—dressed in blue school uniforms and orange headscarves—arrived at the northern local government office.
Major General MLD Saraso of the Nigerian army stated, “There are 131 students here; six others are hospitalised and will be discharged when they recover.”
He added a member of the school staff had been among the 138 individuals kidnapped and had perished in custody. Days before a deadline to pay a ransom of one billion naira ($690,000) for the release of 137 captives—76 female and 61 male—in the nearby state of Zamfara, the army declared on Sunday that it had successfully freed the hostages.
One security source claimed to have witnessed the delivery of 14 black bags—presumably containing the ransom money—to the Dansadau enclave in Zamfara State. He requested to remain anonymous due to concerns about potential consequences.
Mohammed Idris, the minister of information, stated at an Abuja press conference that no ransom was received.
Governor Uba Sani estimated that over 200 kids were abducted on March 7 in the town of Kuriga, in the northwest state of Kaduna, whereas school administrators and locals reported 287.
It was uncertain whether any hostages were still being held captive because to the disparities in the figures provided. Elders from Kuriga stated Sani had informed them that all the hostages had been set free.
