The Kaduna State Police Command has denied a report circulating on social media that between 150 and 200 individuals were kidnapped on the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway.

This comes as the Commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy, Maj Gen Abdul Ibrahim, said Kaduna is now safer than it used to be.

Debunking the mass kidnapping news as fake, the police command said the report was entirely fabricated, without any basis.

“We categorically state that this report is entirely fabricated and without any basis in fact,” the command’s Public Relations Officer, Mansir Hassan, said in a statement issued in Kaduna on Thursday.

Hassan said there had been no such recorded incident of kidnapping along the Abuja-Kaduna highway in the past two years, thanks to the tight security measures in place.

“The attention of the command has been drawn to a false and misleading report currently circulating on social media, reported by ‘Diaspora Digital Media’, claiming that between 150 to 200 individuals were kidnapped along the Abuja-Kaduna Highway.

“The command categorically states that this report is entirely fabricated and without any basis in fact,” it said.

He noted that the area was under surveillance and regular patrols by the police, military, and operatives of the Department of State Service in the state.

“To set the record straight, there has been no recorded incident of kidnapping along the Abuja-Kaduna Highway in the past two years.

“The area remains under constant surveillance and is regularly patrolled on a 24-hour basis by the police, military, DSS and other security forces under tight security to ensure the safety of all commuters,” it added.

In the statement, the commissioner of police warned individuals and media outlets against disseminating false information, which could incite unnecessary panic and disrupt public order.

The statement noted the state government, in collaboration with security forces and agencies, had been working to ensure the safety and security of all persons and properties.

“The commissioner of police strongly warns individuals and media outlets against the dissemination of such falsehoods.

These misleading reports are capable of inciting unnecessary panic and disrupting public order.

“Furthermore, the command is taking this matter seriously.

“Online media channels or individuals found responsible for originating or sharing such fabricated information without sources or basis will be invited for questioning, thoroughly investigated, and may face prosecution in accordance with the law,” the statement said.

Speaking on security in the state, the NDA commandant, addressing the executive members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Kaduna State Council, during a courtesy visit, said Kaduna was better than it used to be.

“I can beat my chest to say that Kaduna State in the last few months is much safer than it used to be. But we are not where we want to be yet,” he said.

He called on journalists to sensitise the general public to the need to report suspicious persons in society to security agencies.

“We are in the process of organising our security helpline, and very soon it will be operational.

“We are not a security outfit per se, but we are also senior military officers who have taken part in working to maintain security in our society.

“So we must join hands and work together so that we can have a country we can be proud of,” he said.

The NUJ Chairman, Abdulgafar Alabelewe, admitted that journalists had a role to play in ensuring a peaceful society.

“We want to appeal for synergy of purpose between the Academy and the NUJ to enable us to report your activities appropriately.

“We are also soliciting for partnership with the NDA in terms of capacity building of our members as well as extending the social responsibility of the prestigious Academy to our union,” he said.


https://punchng.com/no-mass-kidnapping-on-abuja-kaduna-highway-police/