Troops of the Nigerian Army have killed three kidnappers even as two kidnap hostages were rescued during different military operations in Benue State.
This is just as troops also rescued a serving Nigerian Army Warrant Officer, Ogbonna Charles who was abducted in the state by the bandits.
A statement by the Nigerian Army on its official X handle on Thursday said troops acting on actionable intelligence, raided a notorious kidnap syndicate hideout in Sankara in Ukum local government area where they killed three terrorists and rescued two hostages.
One AK-47 rifle, one locally fabricated gun, assorted mobile phones, a camouflage uniform, and one motorbike were recovered by the troops during the operations.
“In a related development, troops on a ‘search and rescue’ operation rescued Warrant Officer Ogbonna Charles, a serving soldier of the Nigerian Army, who was abducted in the Goh Area of Gwer West local government area of Benue State,” the statement said.
The soldier, who was abducted on 25 May 2024, in Naka, is currently undergoing medical checks following his rescue.
Similarly, troops had on 30 May 2024, rescued Lieutenant Bot Elisha and 10 other passengers who were kidnapped while traveling on board a Peace Mass Transit Bus from Abuja to Port Harcourt.
“The troops, diligently combing known and suspected enclaves of the kidnappers, successfully trailed and freed the victims. All rescued individuals are currently receiving medical attention” the statement said.
Furthermore, following an airstrike by the Nigerian Air Force on the hideout of a militia kingpin known as “Full Fire” on 29 May 2024, troops conducted an exploitation mission to the target camp where they recovered four Baofeng radios with six chargers, one laptop, two Itel phones, three Samsung tablets, and 22 SIM cards of various networks.
Troops also recovered two Moniepoint POS machines, numerous phone batteries, one HP hard drive, various family pictures, one burnt AK-49 rifle, a magazine containing 11 rounds of ammunition, and a pen containing 30 cows were seized.