Bandits have released 14 abducted students and staff of Greenfield University in Kaduna State, after they were paid N180million by their parents.
A statement by the State Commissioner of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, confirmed the release of the students along the Kaduna-Abuja road at about 2:00PM on Saturday, but said nothing about payment of ransom.
“It would be recalled that they were abducted by armed bandits in April and had been in captivity since then. Five students were gruesomely killed by the bandits in the period,” the statement said.
The parents of the abducted students however told the Press that they paid ransom, in addition to providing eight new motorcycles to the kidnappers to secure the release of their children. One of them who did not want his name in print, said they paid the bandits N180million, “ with no help coming from the government whatsoever.”
After a meeting held in Kaduna in April, the parents of the abducted students had appealed to the government and public to help with the N800 million ransom demanded by the bandits.
But both ehe Kaduna State Government and the Federal Government declined to pay any form of ransom payments to bandits.
However, after their release, the statement said “Governor Nasir El-Rufai welcomed the news of the students’ release, and conveyed solace and encouragement to them following their harrowing ordeal.”
The students and staff had been abducted by armed bandits from their hostels on April 20.
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