Two persons with visual impairments have been kidnapped by gunmen in Plateau State, with their abductors demanding N50m for their release.
The victims, a man and a woman, were among nine occupants of a vehicle attacked around 8pm on Monday in Riyom Local Government Area while travelling back to Jos from Benue State. Seven other passengers reportedly escaped from the attackers.
The Plateau State Chairman of the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities, Shindol Aaron, who confirmed the incident, said the group was returning from a training programme in Benue when they received information that the event had been postponed.
He explained that the passengers had decided to return to Jos but were ambushed on their way, resulting in the abduction of two members of the group.
Aaron said the kidnappers took the male and female passengers, while the other seven occupants managed to flee during the attack.
He added that the association had received information about contact between the abductors and a person connected to the victims, but said the matter had been reported to security agencies for intervention.
Another member of the association, Ishaya Ayuba Danjatau, disclosed that the kidnappers had requested N50m as a condition for releasing the two victims.
Expressing concern over the demand, Danjatau questioned how the association could raise such a huge amount, while efforts to obtain the reaction of the Plateau State Police Command spokesman, DSP Alabo Alfred, were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.
