Confusion on Monday surrounded reports of the alleged abduction of over 170 worshippers from three churches in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, with religious leaders and residents giving accounts at variance with official statements by security agencies.
The Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 Northern states, Rev. Joseph John Hayab, confirmed that worshippers were taken during coordinated attacks on churches in Kurmin Wali community on Sunday, saying, “What I got from the area is that 172 were said to have been abducted and nine managed to escape, with the remaining 163 people still with the abductors.”
Residents also claimed the attackers arrived in large numbers, fired shots to scare the community and whisked away congregants, mostly women and youths, into nearby forests, with a few elderly victims later released.
However, the Kaduna State Police Command and the chairman of Kajuru Local Government Area dismissed the reports, insisting that no kidnapping took place.
Police Commissioner Muhammad Rabiu described the claims as false, challenging those making them to provide names of victims, while the council chairman, Dauda Madaki, said security agencies found no evidence of any attack after visiting the area. The Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Sule Shuaibu, SAN, also said investigations and engagements with CAN leaders showed the reports were unfounded.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party described the alleged abduction as “a grave indictment of the security architecture,” saying, “Nigerians must not live in fear when going to churches or mosques to worship,” and urging the Federal Government to take decisive action beyond what it called “propaganda.”