An unknown number of travellers were kidnapped on New Year’s Day along the Kagoma-Kafanchan road, a dreaded road in the Jama’a Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

A source, who asked not to be named, told FIJ that the attack occurred at about 6 pm on Saturday.

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“We were on our way back from Kagoma, where we had gone to celebrate the new year with an old friend, when we witnessed the incident. I was in the car with my friend. Ordinarily I was supposed to be behind the wheel, but I decided to allow my friend drive,” he told FIJ.

The source said two gunmen suddenly emerged and shot many times in their direction.

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“It happened very quickly. They shot several times in our direction and shattered the windscreen. I immediately bent down so as not to get hit. I owe our survival to my friend because he bravely drove past them despite the heavy shooting.

“The two front tyres had already gone flat, but he kept going. When we had gone far, we saw some men talking to about eight soldiers. Their Toyota Camry car had several bullet holes around the bonnet area. Their windscreen had also been shattered. We then decided to stop too,” he said.

The source said it was from the men’s explanation to the soldiers that he realised that they were victims of the same attack.

“They had passed the same axis before us and had been attacked the same way. They said they also saw the gunmen forcing some passengers out of another vehicle and leading them into a nearby bush at gun point. That same part of the highway has witnessed many kidnappings in the past,” he said.

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The source said that two of the soldiers stayed with them while trying to repair their tires, while the rest went in the direction of the attack.

FIJ made several calls to Muhammad Jalige, the Kaduna police spokesperson, but they were not answered. At press time, a text message sent to him had also not been responded to.