Nigerian Troops Foil Kidnap Attempt Of Passengers By Bandits Along Kaduna-Abuja Highway

Troops of Operation THUNDER STRIKE, under the auspices of the ongoing Operation ACCORD, have foiled an attempted kidnap of passengers along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway by armed bandits.

This was disclosed in a statement released by the Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Major-General John Enenche on Friday.

Enenche explained that the incident which occurred on Thursday, June 25, was “sequel to actionable Human Intelligence on the activities of armed bandits between Olams and Alheri camp along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway”.

He said the troops promptly deployed to the scene, engaged the bandits with effective firepower.

“Troops overwhelmed the criminals with high-intensity fire, forcing them to abandon their heinous mission and fled into the forest in disarray,” he noted.

“As troops engaged the bandits, passengers in the targeted vehicle, a Toyota Hiace Bus with registration number Lagos MUS-944FR travelling from Abuja to Kaduna, managed to escape in various directions into the surrounding bushes.”

Explaining further, the Defence Media Coordinator said the gallant troops, adopting an aggressive posture, pursued the bandits deep into the forest and inflicted fatal injuries on them while also exhibiting the requisite composure in recovering all the passengers who escaped into the bush during the encounter.

He said the troops are currently exploring the general area of the incident, in search of the fleeing bandits with express orders to bring them into custody while aggressive patrols are underway along the axis.

Maj-Gen. Enenche however disclosed that “all passengers in the targeted vehicle have been accounted for”.