The presiding Catholic priest of St. Thomas Parish, Zaman Dabo Community, in the Zango Kataf Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Rev. Fr. Gabriel Ukeh, has been abducted by bandits.
Ukeh was said to have been abducted at the parish rectory in the early hours of yesterday.
This incident is coming as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has announced the arrest of four suspected bandits in a forest bothering Kaduna State and the FCT.
The Vicar General, Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Kazah confirmed the abduction of the priest in a statement issued yesterday.
He condemned incessant abductions of innocent citizens for ransom payment and called on government and security agencies to up their games.
"While we solicit for fervent prayers for his urgent and safe release, we equally condemn this act of incessant kidnappings for ransom of innocent and defenceless citizens of our communities, and we call upon the government to horn its security intelligence as we approach the celebration of Sallah " the statement said.
"As we work with security operatives for his quick release, we wish to call on all to stay away from taking the laws into their hands. We will use every legitimate means to ensure that father comes back to us safe and sound.
"Through the intercessions of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of Priests and Religious, may Jesus the crucified hearken to our prayers and hasten the unconditional release of His Priest and every other abducted person," he explained.
Spokesperson of the Kaduna State police command, Masir Hassan could not be reached when contacted as his mobile phone was not reachable
In another development, the FCT Police Command has announced the arrest of four suspected bandits in a forest bothering Kaduna State and the FCT.
In a statement issued yesterday, the Police Public Relations Officer, FCT Command, SP Josephine Adeh, disclosed that the operatives of the FCT Police Command, in collaboration with the Special Forces (SFs) of Guards Brigade and the Department of State Services (DSS), acting on credible intelligence, stormed some identified kidnappers' camps at Gidan Dogo and Kweti Forest, Kaduna State, and arrested four suspects.
According to her, the suspects with two ex-convicts, were identified as Yahaya Abubakar, 25, male of Mpape; Mohammed Mohamed, 32, male of Zuba, (an ex-convict); Umar Aliyu, 20, and Nura Abdullahi, 32, also an ex-convict at Kubwa and Zuba hills, respectively.
Adeh said: "The suspects freely confessed to being members of a notorious bandit syndicate with the name 'Mai One Million', responsible for a series of kidnappings and other heinous crimes in FCT and its environs. The coordinated operation, occasioned a shootout between the bandits and the security operatives, forcing them to scamper to safety and victims rescued. The illegally erected structures by the kidnappers in all the patrolled camps, were all decimated".
She also disclosed that the rescued victims have since been reunited with their families and loved ones.
Reacting to the development, the Commissioner of Police, FCT, CP Bennet Igweh, lauded the effort of the security operatives in the fight against criminality in FCT.
He further reiterated the command's unflinching commitment to ensuring the security and safety of the residents of FCT.
The CP also appealed to residents to be vigilant and report any suspicious movement in their localities to the nearest police formation or other security agencies nearer to them.
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Meanwhile, the Force Headquarters, in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), is building the capacity of Police Image Managers and officers of the Complaints Response Unit (CRU), on complaint management.
In a statement over the weekend, the Force Spokesperson, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said the capacity building is in furtherance of the Inspector General (IG) of police's approval to enhance mutual relations between the public and the Police.
Adejobi said that the training, which is holding in Lagos, is in two batches, stressing that the first is hosting Police Public Relations Officers and officers of the Complaint Response Unit from some states of the Federation and the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
The capacity building, he said, is geared at enhancing the capacity of police personnel to handle complaints more effectively, ensure timely responses, and improve overall public trust in the Police.
