Terrorists kidnap passengers on Abuja-Lokoja expressway
Terrorists have kidnapped passengers travelling in an 18-seater bus on the Abuja-Lokoja highway .
The last time an attack was reported on the highway was in July when nine passengers were kidnapped from a Sharon bus heading to Abuja.
The recent incident, according to a Daily Trust report, happened on Thursday around Aseni, a Kogi State village bordering the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
It was reported that the terrorists ambushed the bus after Ochonyi village on the highway.
Local sources said the terrorists opened fire on the bus, deflating its tires, while the driver struggled to maneuver through potholes along the road.
The number of people kidnapped from the bus has not been ascertained.
Williams Ovye-Aya, the spokesperson for Kogi Police Command, did not respond to an enquiry sent to him. However, this newspaper gathered that a joint team of local vigilantes and police officers were tracing the terrorist.
The dangerous highway
The Abuja-Lokoja highway became a flashpoint of kidnapping around 2020.
Many people have been kidnapped on the road, according to media reports.
“The bandits take advantage of dilapidated sections of the road,” a commercial driver who shuttles Lokoja and Abuja told PREMIUM TIMES.
Highway abduction is common in Kogi State, especially in areas bordering Kwara and Edo states.
This newspaper reported terrorists staged a twin attack on Egbe-Ilorin highway on Saturday, kidnapping nine passengers and injuring three others including a commercial driver.