A young father in Kogi State is living through a nightmare after armed men stormed his family home, abducting his wife and two young children. Abdullahi Sheriff, 36, has made a desperate appeal to the state government and security agencies to rescue his loved ones, who were taken in a brazen midnight attack.
A New Home Turned Nightmare
The tragic incident unfolded on Friday evening in the Zango community, located in the Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State. Abdullahi Sheriff had only recently moved his family into their new residence in Zone 12 on 18 December last year. He explained that pressure from his landlord, who increased the rent, forced him to take a loan to complete part of the building so they could relocate.
"I had hardly settled down in my new house when some strange men invaded my house in my absence," a distraught Sheriff told newsmen on Sunday. He described hearing sporadic gunshots directed at his home and immediately sprang into action to seek help.
Failed Rescue Attempts and Security Lapses
Sheriff's quest for assistance met with frustrating delays and bureaucracy. He first ran to the local Vigilante Office but was instructed to report to the police station. After finding the police seemingly helpless, he returned to the vigilantes. They, however, stated they could not act without an order from their superior, or "oga."
"I was there for more than 30 minutes trying to call their oga to no avail while the kidnappers were still in my house shooting sporadically," he recounted. By the time the Army arrived on the scene, it was too late. The kidnappers had escaped with three members of his family.
Abidat Sheriff, his 35-year-old wife who was just discharged from the hospital the previous Wednesday, was taken. Also abducted were his five-year-old son, Mubarak, who was taken naked without clothes or shoes, and his daughter, Zainab Sheriff, aged one year and eight months.
Chaos in the Forest and a Miraculous Escape
The Army pursued the kidnappers into the forest, with Sheriff following. The pursuit was abruptly disrupted by gunfire from behind, which turned out to be from another group of vigilantes. This confusion forced the Army to suspend the chase until morning.
In a heartbreaking turn, the kidnappers later abandoned the infant, Zainab, in an uncompleted building along a bush path. The little girl was found in an area known to be inhabited by dangerous snakes.
The second wife, Mrs. Faiza Aliba Sheriff, who was present during the attack, narrated a harrowing tale of survival. She was in an inner room preparing food when the assailants struck. She switched off the light, held her baby's mouth, and hid under a bed. Her three-year-old firstborn, Nazirat, was initially taken but was thrown out of a window after crying incessantly. Faiza later managed to escape through a back door with the children, crawling into the darkness until a good Samaritan took them in.
Breaking down in tears, Abdullahi Sheriff called on the office of the National Security Adviser to deploy helicopters and drones to track the kidnappers. He urged the army and all security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue his wife and son, who have now spent days in captivity.
As of the time of reporting, the kidnappers had not made any ransom demand. Neither the police nor the Kogi State government had issued an official statement regarding the incident.
