Kidnapped Plateau commissioner’s wife, daughter’s whereabouts unknown –Police

Suspected terrorists on Saturday abducted the wife and daughter of Plateau State Commissioner for Environment, Usman Bamaiyi,

The gunmen were said to have invaded Bamaiyi’s residence located in the Gindiri community, in the Mangu Local Government Area of the state at about 2am.

A source said the commissioner, who is also seeking to represent Mangu/Bokkos Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, was at home when the gunmen broke into his home and carried out the attack.

A resident of Gindiri, who confirmed the attack to our correspondent in Jos, said, “Some heavily armed men came to Gindiri last night (Friday) at about 2am. They went straight to the house of the Commissioner for Environment. The sound of gunshots fired by the gunmen was loud. When they eventually left, we discovered that they took the commissioner’s wife and his daughter away.”

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Ubah Ogaba, also confirmed the incident.

Ogaba added, “When we got the information at about 2:30am, we quickly mobilised our tactical team to the area. At the moment, our men are working to rescue the victims and arrest the perpetrators.”

Some gunmen in December 2021 abducted the paramount ruler of Gindiri, Charles Mato, when they attacked his palace.

The monarch was, however, released by his abductors after an alleged ransom payment.

Meanwhile, elders in Plateau State, under the aegis of Plateau Elders Forum, have urged the state government to acknowledge its failure to provide security for the people.

In a statement issued on Saturday by the group’s, spokesperson, Jonathan Ishaku, after a meeting, the elders led by a former Ambassador to Switzerland, Yahaya Kwande, said they believed acknowledging such a failure would enable the government to work out a new strategy aimed at tackling violence in the state.