- By Mansur Abubakar
- BBC News, Abuja
January 22, 2024, 15:36 GMT
Updated 46 minutes ago
Image source: Al-Kadriyar family
image description,
Nabeeha, second from left, was killed by the kidnappers
Nigerian police played no role in rescuing the four sisters and their cousin from kidnappers, an uncle of the girls told the BBC.
They were abducted from their home in Abuja earlier this month along with another sister who was later killed.
The uncle said a ransom was paid and the kidnappers dropped the girls off in a forest to be picked up.
On Sunday, police said they had “successfully rescued” the victims and reunited them with their relatives.
Sheriff Al-Kadriyar, the girls' uncle, said the family drove out to pick them up after a ransom was paid.
“There is nothing better than rescue in this matter, we have paid ransom – although I cannot reveal how much for security reasons,” he told BBC Yoruba.
The Nigerian police spokesman did not respond to a BBC request for comment.
The case shocked the country, and people donated to a crowdfunding initiative to raise the money.
In total, five sisters were taken hostage in the Abuja suburb of Bwari on January 2, along with their father Mansoor Al-Kadriyar, who was later released to raise the ransom.
Sheriff Kadriyar clarified that contrary to previous reports that six Al-Kadriyar sisters had been kidnapped, one of the girls was actually their cousin who was staying with them during school holidays.
Nabeeha, 21, a final-year student, was killed days after her father was released amid a warning that a $68,000 (£53,000) ransom would have to be paid.
Nigeria's defense minister had urged the family not to pay the ransom, but the Al-Kadriyars said they had no choice.
In 2022, a controversial law criminalizing ransom payments was passed to crack down on the country's booming and lucrative kidnapping industry. Anyone who pays a ransom faces a prison sentence of at least 15 years. The minister is among those who said he helped arrange the payment to the kidnappers of the Al-Kadriyar sisters.
Sheriff Kadriyar, who said he was involved in negotiations with the kidnappers, said the money was handed over to them on Wednesday.
They all say the girls were released on Saturday. One of them then called the family early in the evening and gave their location.
“The kidnappers chose the day and place to pick up the girls about four or five days after the ransom was paid,” the uncle said.
A group of male relatives then headed to Kajuru forest in neighboring Kaduna state to find her. On the way they happened to come across an army unit and asked for help.
These army officers accompanied them to find the girls and then took them all home at around 11:30 p.m. local time (10:30 p.m. GMT).
“We are happy and thank God that the girls were found alive,” said the uncle.
His brother and nieces are currently being treated at a medical facility, he said.
Kidnappings are widespread in Nigeria. Hundreds of people have been kidnapped in recent years, mostly by criminal gangs who see it as an easy way to make money. It was particularly bad in the northwest of the country.
There has been an outcry that insecurity has reached the capital, prompting Abuja police last week to set up a special unit to combat kidnap gangs.
The family did not want to discredit the police, but wanted to make it clear how they managed to free the girls, said Sheriff Kadriyar.
Additional reporting by Faoziyah Saanu-Olomoda
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