KATSINA: 520 of us were kidnapped — Escaped Kakanra student

AN 18-year -old student of Government Science School, Kankara, in Katsina State, Osama Aminu Maale, who narrowly escaped from bandits who kidnapped hundreds of his colleagues last Friday has said 520 students were kidnapped in the incident.

Maale in an interview with AFP said 520 students were abducted when the armed bandits stormed the school on Friday night.

“There were a total of 520 of us that were taken by the gunmen from the school.

“After they took us away we stopped inside the bus where they made the older students take a headcount. We counted 520,” he said.

The hostages were split into groups before Maale and four others escaped.

“One of the gunmen hit me repeatedly when I failed to keep up with the rest of the group due to my failing health before he let me trail behind, giving me the chance to escape,” Maale added.

The actual number of schoolboys abducted by the kidnappers has been shrouded in controversy since the incident happened.

The police, in the wake of the abduction, claimed they had rescued over 200 students.

The governor of the state, Aminu Masari, put the total population of students in the school at 839, adding that 333 school boys were missing as of Sunday night.

But he was swiftly countered by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, who claimed only 10 students were yet to be found.

Masari has since ordered immediate closure of all boarding schools in the state.

The Federal Government said efforts were on to rescue the abducted students, adding that the rescue mission would be “a simple task.”