Available reports show that bandits have so far raked in more than one billion Naira from ransoms paid following the attack on the Kaduna-Abuja train.
In the first instance, the family of the Managing Director of Bank of Agriculture, Alwan Ali-Hassan, who was abducted during the attack reportedly paid the staggering sum of one hundred million Naira to secure his freedom.
Mr Hassan was released on April 6 after spending about 10 days in the terrorists den, following his abduction alongside hundreds of passengers on March 28.
Although the terror gang had claimed that no ransom was paid in a short video clip made with the mobile phone of the managing director, but family source said N100 million was paid before he was released.
If Nigerians thought that Hassan’s family paid one hundred million Naira because he is managing director of a bank, they were in for a surprise as later events soon unveiled.
Evidently emboldened by Hassan’s ransom payment, the bandits immediately place a one hundred million Naira bounty on the head of each and every captive.
Then came the next windfall.
Some eight hundred million naira was paid to the terrorists holding the captives seized from the AK9 train before an additional seven victims were released on July 9, families of the victims and other sources knowledgeable to the deal revealed.
It was reliably gathered that families of each of the six Nigerian victims paid N100 million while the captors pegged the ransom for a Pakistani at N200 million which was also paid.
In the latest instance, the terrorists were reportedly financially savvy enough to demand for part of the payment in foreign currency as they collected the ransom in Naira and US dollars.
“Only N200 million was collected in naira, the remaining N600 million was paid in the equivalent of US dollars,” one of our sources said.
Those released were identified as Muhammad Daiyabu Paki, Bosede Olurotimi, Abubakar Zubairu, Alhassan Sule, Sadiq Ango Abdullahi, Aliyu Usman and Muhammad Abuzar Afzal, the Pakistani.
With a sea of available resources, the terrorists were audacious enough to acquire, not only unlimited arms but also manpower needed to attack the Kuje Correctional Facility in Abuja.
The attack saw more than eight hundred prisoners released back into Nigeria’s criminal sphere for another round of killings and kidnappings.
According to the captives, there was wild jubilation after the Tuesday night Kuje jailbreak when those who participated in the attack returned to their enclave with some of the freed prisoners.
Then came another, though lesser but critical enough, windfall when a new set of three victims of the Kaduna train attack were released by terrorists after paying N100 million ransom each, total three hundred million Naira.
News Band gathered that the families of three of the kidnapped victims reportedly paid N100m each to secure their release, bringing the total raked in by the bandits to one billion, two hundred million Naira.
The three victims, which included two males and a female were released on Monday, July 25, after four months in captivity.
One of them, identified as Barrister Usman Lawal Othman, while narrating his ordeal to BBC Hausa service, recounted how they were severely beaten by the terrorists.
Uthman said they were initially sleeping on the bare ground in the thick forest but later, they were provided with mats and when it rained, the terrorists erected makeshift shelters for them.
“We were seriously beaten as seen in the video and it is as a result of failure to rescue us by government. Because of the government’s attitude, they were angered and they thoroughly beat us.
“We were severely flogged and that was just the beginning. This makes me to pity those that are still with them in the forest.”
In terms of feeding, he said: “They fed us according to their capacity. At times, they even slaughtered cattle and sheep for us.
“Even day before yesterday they slaughtered a cow and we ate.”
A security source who spoke to Punch in Kaduna on Monday, said that the victims’ families paid N100 million each for the release of their loved ones.
The source said: “What I can tell you now is that the bandits have freed three victims of the abducted passengers.
“Those three released by them (bandits) include two males and a female. Each of those released paid N100 million,” the source said.
According to a report by Nigerian Tribune, a family member of Barrister Hassan, said that N100 million was paid to the terrorists before they agreed to release him.
“My elder brother paid N50 million, while friends, sympathisers paid the remaining balance. We are happy to see our brother back,” he said.
He thanked Nigerians for their prayers and support during these most difficult times.
”We never envisaged we would see him alive, especially when we saw him on the video yesterday.
“We couldn’t sleep. We were all awake, praying fervently for their release. We will pray for the release of the remaining ones who are still in captivity.
”Right now, we are on our way to the hospital so that he will be properly examined.”
Other passengers have also been released, especially those that constitute human and health hazard, including a pregnant woman.
Meanwhile, there are some 40 people still remaining in captivity.
According to Mr. Sadiq Ango Abdullahi, the son of the Chairman of the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF), Prof. Ango Abdullahi, who is also the Convener of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), despite his release alongside others, some 43 victims of the Abuja – Kaduna train attack are still in captivity. before the latest release of 3 persons.
Mr. Abdullahi said the remaining passengers included aged women and children below ten years of age.
News Band had reported that Ango Abdullahi alongside six others, had been released from captivity, after 104 days in captivity.
The question on the lips of pundits is: if the release of about a dozen persons fetched the bandits well over a billion Naira, how much more will the remaining forty captives fetch?
In the meantime, in a recently released video documentary, a bandit was seen saying that the beneficiaries of the kidnappings include government officials and people in power.
