Bandits Storm Katsina Hospital, Abduct Women

Suspected Bandits on Thursday continued their raid on Katsina State as they reportedly attacked Kurfi General Hospital in Kurfi Local Government Area of the state and abducted four women

Reports said among the abducted women is the wife of one of the health officials on duty, even as the bandits also shot a watchman in the process.

An insider in the hospital who preferred anonymity told some reporters that three of the bandits who entered the hospital’s premises around 10:45 am unarmed later engaged the guardsman who intercepted them to inquire about their mission.

“Whey they started arguing, the watchman quickly went and locked the hospital gate, unknown to him that other armed members of the attackers were outside.

“They jumped over the wall fence and shot the watchman in the stomach. It was thought that he had died but was later given first aid and rushed to a hospital in Katsina” the source said.

Reliable sources further hinted that the attackers had wanted to abduct one Mustapha Hamza, a casual staff of the hospital on duty at the time of the incident, but he luckily escaped from the scene. However, his wife, who accompanied him to the hospital, was not so lucky as the bandits abducted her in the ensuing confusion.

One of the sources said; “Mustapha is an Anastasia nurse and he was on call at the time to attend to a woman who would undergo surgery. Usually, his wife would follow him whenever he is called because she would not be comfortable staying at home alone. And that was how she fell victim in the attack,” a source who craved anonymity said.

The source said Kurfi was hitherto considered a fortified town with criminal elements hardly able to penetrate because of the collaborative activities of local vigilante groups that were backed by some well-to-do members of the community.

However, things later changed dramatically with the collapse of the vigilante arrangements which some residents attributed to the political differences among some highly-placed individuals in the area.

Also, some residents of the area are blaming recent attacks on informants who migrated to the town when it was safer and their dubious activities have made it increasingly difficult for security operatives to keep tap on the deadly criminals

Meanwhile, the Kurfi Council chairman, Mannir Shehu Wurma, who confirmed the attack, assured that the Council was on top of the situation even as there has been no official words from security agencies,

Available reports indicated that only recently, kidnappers abducted a nursing mother with her twin children, as well as a third child not more than four years old. The mother and the twins were released by their captors following the payment of N3.5 million ransom.

Unfortunately, the young boy, fondly called AK, has remained in captivity with the bandits asking for an additional N1.5 million to guarantee his release.