Zarah Abubakar Shehu, a 21-year-old student at the Federal University Gusau, has tragically passed away in captivity four months after being abducted by armed bandits in Zamfara State.
A 300-level student, Zarah was taken along with her two siblings in the early hours of November 3, 2024, when attackers stormed their home in the Damba area of Gusau.
Security analyst and counter-insurgency expert Zagazola Makama shared the heartbreaking news on his X handle. He reported that the kidnappers initially demanded ₦35 million for their release but later reduced it to ₦10 million after negotiations. However, after receiving the ransom, the abductors refused to set Zarah free, instead demanding four motorcycles (Boza) and four cartons of engine oil as additional conditions.
Despite months of efforts to fulfill these demands, by the time the items were secured and the gang’s leader was informed, it was discovered that Zarah had already passed away and had been buried two days earlier.
Zarah was the only daughter of her mother and endured four months in captivity before her tragic death.
Zamfara State remains one of the regions in northern Nigeria plagued by violent criminal groups, commonly referred to as bandits. These gangs frequently raid villages, loot properties, kill residents, and burn homes. Operating from camps within a vast forest covering Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, and Niger states, they have been responsible for numerous mass kidnappings in recent years.
In 2019, then-Governor Bello Matawalle, now Minister of State for Defence, attempted to negotiate a peace deal with these groups. However, despite the agreement, attacks on communities persisted, with residents continuing to face abductions and killings.
