Khadija Sani Abubakar a female student of Bauchi State University Gadau, Bauchi Campus was abducted by yet-to-be-identified armed men. Luckily, she later regained her freedom.
The 200-level undergraduate of Sociology was whisked away by her abductors on Friday night October 20, 2023, at the Yuli village a suburb of Bauchi town and the host community of the institution.
Narrating her nightmare, Khadija said she was rescued by the male students of the institution living off the campus who might have perceived her screaming. “It was on Friday night at about 8:10 pm when I came back from Bauchi town,” she told WikkiTimes. “I boarded a tricycle machine from Awala to Yuli. He dropped me near the filling station in Yuli. As I started walking, two strong people blocked me and frowned at me to follow them. They later forcefully dragged me to a nearby bush,” she added.
Khadija was not aware that her abductors had a formidable gang, “After we reached the bush I saw another 3 people making five in numbers with machetes and knives.
Within 20 Days, Gunmen Kidnapped 48 Varsity Students in Three Northern States
According to the escapee, within a few minutes, her abductors commenced processing for ransom, “They collected my phone and bag and they asked me to give them my father’s phone number.”
HOW I WAS RESCUED
She explained that at that moment she was luckily rescued, “later we heard the noises of people approaching where they hid me so they ran and left me there realizing that the mob are after me. I don’t know that one of the students living in Yuli heard me while I was screaming for help.
Khadija said the frightening moment of that fateful day would never fade away from her mind, “It was a terrible experience.”
Students living in the area have been experiencing a series of attacks by armed robbers with valuables including phones, money and laptops lost, however, her incident was the first kidnap attempt in the institution.
YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the University, Isah Sulaiman, told WikkiTimes that the school authority has full control of only what happens in the campus, but anything outside the school premises, the institution would not be held accountable. “The school is not aware because it happened outside the school, not in a hostel, so you can confirm from the people living in Yuli town about the development.”
WikkiTimes gathered that Yuli is less than a half kilometre from the institution’s main gate.
Also contacted the Bauchi State Police Command Public Relations Officer SP Muhammed Ahmed Wakil, could not be reached for comment as he did not respond to the inquiries sent to him at press time.
WikkiTimes reports that universities in Northern states have recently come under attack as kidnappers suspected to be bandits have been on a rampage abducting students.
Three institutions in three states were affected – Zamfara and Kastina in the Northwest, and Nasarawa State in North Central. The institutions affected are the Federal University of Gusau, Federal University Dutsinma, and Nasarawa State University Keffi, respectively.
