A total of 21 workers aged between 16 and 20 who were abducted last Thursday from a farm in Katsina state, northern Nigeria, have now been released, state police said.
A police spokesman, Gambo Isah, reported the release without specifying whether any ransom had been paid. He did confirm that the young men have been reunited with their families, reports the Nigerian newspaper ‘Punch’.
«It is with great joy that I announce the release of all 21 workers who were abducted while working on a farm in Kamfanin Mai Lafiya, Katsina State. They are now with their families. The investigation is continuing,» he explained.
It was initially reported that 40 children were abducted, but the police statement said that all those held have been released.
According to information gathered by the Nigerian newspaper ‘The Premium Times’, the kidnappers had demanded the payment of 30 million naira (about 70,120 euros) as ransom.
The insecurity in Nigeria, previously centered in the northeast of the country, has spread in recent months to other areas in the north and northwest, raising alarms about the possible expansion of these terrorist and criminal networks.
