Following recent revelations on the abduction, conversion and selling of children from Northern part of the country by kidnappers all the way from the Southeast, more parents are stepping forward to demand the release of 47 more children allegedly missing and under the custody of a criminal Igbo syndicate specialised in abducting and converting young Muslim children to Christianity.
According to Daily Trust, the said criminal syndicate specializes in abducting young Muslims from Kano to Southern part of the country where their names are later renamed, converted to Christianity and sole to slavery.
The affected parents under the umbrella of the Protection Against the Abduction/Missing of Our Children, demanded for thorough investigation into the matter.
Secretary of the group, Malam Shuaibu Ibahim said the affected families and their relations were undergoing extreme trauma courtesy of the abduction of their loved ones by the criminals.
Ibrahim said, “We are happy that the police have made a break through by arresting some members of the syndicate. The police should interrogate the suspects thoroughly in order to un-ravel their accomplices so that other children that are still missing can be rescued and reunited with their parents.”
The parents also released the list of the 47 missing children as well as photos of 23 of the children who were kidnapped from neighborhoods such as Walalambe, Walawai, Hotoro, Kawo and Tinshama, all in Nassarawa local government as well as Rimin Kebe and Dakata in Ungogo local government areas of Kano state.
Specialized Organized Crime
In a related development, the Kano Concerned Citizen Initiative (KCCI) has condemned, in a strong term, the abduction of nine Kano kids, just as it urged the police and other security agencies to investigate the matter thoroughly.
The KCCI in a statement signed by its Chairman, Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa, lamented that it was widely reported that the names of the affected children were changed and converted to Christianity, describing the development as dangerous and frightening.
“Whatever was the purpose of these abductions it is still frightening because of the news-paper reports of the horrendous experiences the children underwent. This is a specialized organized crime that manipulates religion to exploit the innocent children,” the statement indicated.
The Initiative noted that the case of these abducted children is a special case, unlike other crimes, it has some ideological undertones, saying “other criminal kidnappers demand ransom while in this special case the children were abducted for certain purposes, of which the police investigation is still being awaited.
