Abducted Tegina Islamiyya Students’ Road To Freedom: How Bandits Collected N68m, Motorbikes From Parents

The release of the remaining abducted Tegina Islamiyya students may have come at a heavy cost to the parents,as National Mail Online learnt from one of the parents that an additional payment of  N18 million ransom and supply of the several motorcycles demanded by the bandits encouraged the bandits to free the pupils.

We gathered that two top politicians from Rafi LGA contributed money for this ransom.

Following their abduction on May 30, this year, tears continued to flow in many homes in Tegina as traumatised parents awaited a miracle for the release of their kids, following the refusal of the abductors to free the pupils after collecting N50 million ransom contributed by parents and sympathisers.

Seventeen of the initial 136 abductees had escaped while six others reportedly died in the forest where they were being held.

The kidnappers had agreed to free the remaining 116 pupils if the ransom reduced from the initial N200 million to N50 million was paid.Recently sympathisers had mobilised N30 million to the kidnappers at an agreed location in the forest after an initial N20 million was paid in June. But after counting the money, the abductors declared that it was N4.6 million short and detained the conveyor of the ransom, while also holding the pupils.

They subsequently phoned the parents to send the N4.6 million balance plus another N2 million short from the initial payment of N20 million, totaling N6.6 million.

Besides, the kidnappers also made fresh demand asking the parents to supply six brand new Bajaj motorcycles before the pupils would be released.

One of  the parents of the children who confirmed the release to our correspondent on telephone while expressing gratitude to God revealed that but for the kind politicians who raised the new ransom,it would have be impossible to raise this early. “Our abducted children are back; as I speak with you now they are being conveyed to government house, Minna. I’m happy and remain eternally grateful to the two politicians who raised the newly demanded N18m ransom” said the excited parent who spoke last night.