48 hours after the abduction of six Islamic clerics, mostly chief imams of Juma'at mosques in Bakura Local Government Area of Zamfara State, the bandits are yet to contact the families of the victims, Daily Trust has gathered.
Locals in Dakko village, whose chief imam, Malam Muhammadu Shehu, and his deputy, Malam Murtala Dakko, were among those abducted, said neither of the families has received any communication from the bandits.
A community member, Malam Musa Dakko, said: "We expected the bandits to contact the families of the scholars by now, given their position in society, but they have not. We have resorted to prayers for their safe return.
"We are in serious shock because we don't know whether the clerics are still alive or have been killed. This uncertainty alone is enough to traumatise the whole community. We want our scholars back.
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"We are appealing to the government to intensify the search and rescue operation. On our part, we will continue to pray. The families and the entire community are terrified."
Also, a resident of Dogon Modacci, Yunusa Rilwanu, said, "We are still waiting for their (bandits) calls, but for sure they will contact the affected families to demand ransom.
"They don't rush. They always take their time to study the situation before contacting families of their victims."
The kidnapped clerics are: Malam Muhammadu Shehu, Chief Imam of Dakko Juma'at Mosque; Malam Murtala Dakko, Deputy Imam, Dakko Juma'at Mosque; Malam Muhammad Yahuza, Chief Imam of Dogon Madacci 1st Juma'at Mosque; Malam Magawata Abdullahi, Chief Imam of Dogon Madacci 2nd Juma'at Mosque; Malam Bala Hogun, Chief Imam of Hogun Juma'at Mosque and Malam Muhammad Tasi'u, Chief Imam of Kwatsama Juma'at Mosque.
Daily Trust gathered that the clerics were abducted on Saturday by bandits at Gidan Bature village in Damri Ward, Bakura LGA.
It was further learnt that five of the clerics are from Bakura LGA, while one is from Anka LGA.
Multiple sources, who confirmed the abduction on condition of anonymity, said the bandits ambushed the clerics and took them away.
One of the sources said the clerics were on their way to Talata Mafara to attend a meeting at the residence of Senator Abdulaziz Yari.
"You know that in an effort to escape bandits, travellers have deserted major roads. We now resort to feeder roads for safety. Unfortunately for the clerics, the bandits staged an ambush along the Dakko-Damri feeder road and abducted them.
"We suspect the abductors had prior knowledge of the route the clerics followed. Bakura shares borders with Bukkuyum and Anka. So the clerics travelled through feeder roads from Lambar Bakura to Dambi, and then to Sabon Garin Dambi before heading to Talata Mafara," the source said.
Confirming the incident to Daily Trust, the Zamfara State Commissioner of Police, CP Ahmad Bello, said the clerics were travelling in a private car when they were abducted.
CP Bello, however, said the police have launched a search and rescue operation for the abducted clerics, assuring that they will not relent until the scholars are safely rescued.
"We have dispatched our men for the search of the abducted clerics, and we will not relent in our efforts until we get them back to their families. All we need is cooperation from the host communities," he said.
The commissioner further urged members of the public to adhere to security advisories.
"If people adhere to our advice, they will surely stay safe. I am appealing to the people of Zamfara State to always seek police escort while travelling to far places. The police are always available and ready to protect the citizens," he added.
Vigilantes trap bandits for hours
Meanwhile, local security guards in Damri community, Bakura LGA, said they trapped bandits who abducted six imams on their way to Talata Mafara.
A resident of Damri told Daily Trust that the vigilantes pursued the bandits after the abduction and succeeded in blocking them in the bush for several hours.
The resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the vigilantes prevented the bandits from moving with their victims for about four hours.
One of the security guards said they confronted the bandits and blocked their movement from about 11 am to 3 pm but were forced to withdraw because they lacked reinforcement from conventional security forces.
"We went after the bandits and blocked them in one place in the bush for hours. They were unable to move from around 11 am until about 3 pm.
"But the lack of security intervention weakened us. We had to allow them to go because we could not engage them directly for fear that the imams would be killed," he said.
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The vigilante said the bandits opened fire on them but later withdrew.
He said Damri was surrounded by three major bandit camps, including one at Mai Sheka, about five kilometres from Matsafa village in Talata Mafara LGA.
He said bandits operating from the area attacked communities in Tireta and Shagari in Sokoto State and parts of Bukkuyum and Anka LGAs in Zamfara.
Another resident alleged that bandits recently abducted a man, collected N900,000 ransom from his family and killed him less than three hours later.
"They shot him in the leg, and he bled to death," he said.
The resident also identified Barayar Zaki as another major bandit camp, saying the gangs accessed Damri through Barayar Zaki, Jigawa, Wanun Godabe and Banbaye.
He alleged that one of the bandit leaders, identified as Gashin Kaza, had been involved in attacks, cattle rustling and abductions in the area.
