Kaduna Community Reels After Gunmen Abduct Vigilante Official, Wife and 12 Others

Residents of Janjala community in Kagarko Local Government Area of Kaduna State are counting their losses after armed men invaded the area and abducted 14 people, including a vigilante official and his wife.

Witnesses in the community said the attackers struck in the early hours of Tuesday, 3 March 2026, firing repeatedly as residents tried to escape. They identified one of the victims as Shamsudeen Adama, a vigilante official, and said his wife, Fatima, was also taken.

A resident, Ayatullah Ibrahim, said the gunmen came in large numbers and were heavily armed. He said the assailants emerged from nearby bush paths and opened fire at the rear of the village, where local vigilantes were positioned.

According to him, the vigilantes exchanged gunfire with the attackers but could not hold them back because of the difference in numbers. He said a warning had come through a walkie-talkie shortly before the raid, but the community still could not stop the assault.

“During the sporadic shooting, one of our members identified as Ibrahim was hit by a stray bullet, but miraculously, the bullet did not penetrate,” Ibrahim said.

Another resident, Aliyu Mahmud, said the shooting lasted close to an hour and no security team arrived while the attack was underway. He added that the gunmen also looted a local shop and took snacks, provisions and recharge cards valued at more than N176,000.

Community members listed those abducted as Saleh Adamu and Fatima Adamu, Gambo Bakoshi and Abdulmalik Gambo, Danlami Usman, Husaaiba Usman, and her two-year-old son, Usman Saudatu Usman, Murjanatu Habiba, and Abida Habibu.

They also named Yahanasu Yakubu, Sadiya Abubakar, Rabiatu Ummi and Maryam Ibrahim among the victims.

Mrs Halima Bello, whose husband was kidnapped, described the scene as terrifying. She said the attackers forced open doors while families hid in fear.

“The bandits used force to open my husband’s door. I opened mine quietly to see what was happening. They initially wanted to take me too, but they spared me when my four-year-old daughter, Khadijat, started crying and screaming at them,” she said.

Abubakar Ibrahim, who said three of his daughters were taken in this latest attack, said the family had suffered a similar abduction two years ago and was still struggling with debt from ransom payments.

“I am still paying off the debt from the last ransom,” he said. “When I went to deliver the money two years ago, they held me captive alongside my children for days. I don’t even have enough to eat three square meals a day now; I don’t know where to start looking for another ransom.”

A civil servant in the area, who asked not to be named, said this was the third major attack on Janjala in about two years. He said repeated raids had pushed many residents to leave for Kagarko and Sabon-Wuse, while nearby settlements including Kohoto, Iddo, Kurmin Kare and Hayin-Dam had become largely deserted.

From his hospital bed at Kagarko General Hospital, Shamsudeen Adamu said he was shot in the abdomen while trying to flee. He said he crawled into an uncompleted building and remained there until the attackers left, after which he was moved to the hospital on a motorcycle.

The Waziri of Janjala, Alhaji Saleh Musa, said residents now feel trapped by the security situation. He criticised what he described as a delayed response from security agencies.

“As I speak to you, no security operatives from Kagarko have shown up to show concern over Saturday night’s tragedy,” he said.

A security source confirmed the abduction and said troops and vigilantes were searching surrounding forests to rescue the victims. At the time of filing, Kaduna State Police Command spokesperson DSP Hassan Mansur had not issued an official confirmation.