“I was lucky I survived it” – Kidnappers beat me after I told them my family could only raise N500,000 ransom

A kidnap victim, Anyichie, has recounted how armed men attacked the bus he was travelling in, shooting sporadically before abducting the passengers.

Anyichie said he noticed some members of the gang travelling in a red Toyota Yaris and posing as passengers shortly before the attack.

According to him, the vehicle overtook their bus and blocked its path after their driver failed to respond to a signal from another vehicle to move ahead.

“Our driver tried to enter the bush, but unfortunately, six of them emerged, shooting sporadically. Their leader had an AK-47, another carried a pump-action rifle, while the third had a pistol,” he said.

Anyichie said the abductors repeatedly moved their victims from one location to another, suggesting that they had informants monitoring their movements.

He said the kidnappers eventually took them back to the location where they were initially abducted, where security operatives engaged the gang in a gun battle.

“I was lucky I survived it. If not for the grace of God, they could have gone further, which might have resulted in something else,” he said.

The account highlights the frightening circumstances surrounding the abduction and the eventual intervention of security operatives.