At least 23 residents have been kidnapped by bandits in Gajit Village, Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

Sources told our reporter that a large number of armed bandits stormed Gajit Village at about 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, carrying out the attack under the cover of darkness.

A relative of some of the abducted victims said the attackers outsmarted residents and successfully infiltrated the village before launching their operation.

“We usually defend our village from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. This time, the bandits allowed us to fall asleep before attacking the community and abducting many people,” he said.

According to him, a total of 27 persons, including women and children, were initially abducted during the raid. He added that one man was later released along with three minors, reducing the number of those still in captivity to 23.

The source also expressed concern over what he described as a lack of cooperation from security operatives, alleging that calls for reinforcement during the attack went unanswered.

Other residents, who spoke to our correspondent, appealed to the government to deploy more security personnel to the area, lamenting that they now live in constant fear and anxiety.

All attempts to reach the Police Public Relations Officer of the Sokoto State Police Command, DSP Ahmad Rufai, for comments were unsuccessful. He did not respond to calls and a text message as of the time of filing this report. (Daily Trust)