A viral video of bandits, who kidnapped bride and sixy-two wedding guests in Katsina State threatening to remarry the newlywed and sell off the other victims has emerged.
Recall that the marauders abducted the groom and the others in Sabuwa LGA of Katsina last Thursday when they ambushed the wedding train while she was being accompanied to her would-be matrimonial home at Damari.
In the video making the rounds on social media, the abductors demanded a N100m ransom, failure the bride would be made to marry one of them, while the rest would be sold off.
In the footage, a gang leader, cladded in police uniform, put the captives’ number at 63.
He taunted the government saying they would marry off the bride if the ransom was not paid.
“I am the one who abducted them, and I will never release them until ransom is paid. And if there is anyone who thinks they could rescue them, they should try it,” he said.
Also in the footage, some of the captives were seen with AK-47 rifles hung around their necks, while the bride was seen dressed in an army uniform, with one of the bandits saying “Here is the bride adorned in army uniform”.
The captives were heard pleading for help; asking their relations to pay the ransom.
The driver of the vehicle that conveyed the wedding guests, was also seen in the video carrying a gun, pleading that the ransom be paid.
The bride’s family confirmed that the terrorists were demanding a ransom of N100 million for the release of all the captives.
Haruna Abdullahi, an uncle of the bride, stated: “They are asking for N100 million as ransom. None of us has ever seen that amount of money; so I told them directly that we don’t have such funds.”
He also said the kidnappers told him they shot the video as a challenge to the state governor, Dikko Umar Radda, who was reported to have vowed to rescue the victims.
“They said they made the video to demonstrate their seriousness to the governor,” Abdullahi said, expressing appreciation for the governor’s concern and promise of rescuing the victims.
Abdullahi disclosed that among those abducted were eight of his sisters and nine daughters.
Another family member, who simply identified himself as Zubairu, revealed that his wife, six children and 13 relatives were among the abductees.
