The Niger State Police Command has commenced the formal documentation of students and teachers abducted during last week’s attack on Papiri town in Agwara Local Government Area.
Police authorities on Friday invited parents of the missing children and staff to provide detailed information, following concerns over the absence of reliable data on the number of victims, those still in captivity and those who have returned.
Initial reports indicated that more than 259 students and 13 teachers were abducted by terrorists, though 66 victims were said to have escaped under unclear circumstances.
Confirming the development in a telephone interview with THISDAY, the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, said:
“We have invited the parents to come and give us information about the children including those that have reunited with their parents.”
He did not, however, disclose how many names had so far been captured in the newly opened register.
Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, also acknowledged in an interview with the BBC Hausa Service that the government has yet to ascertain the exact number of abducted or recovered victims.
He stated that the school had been officially shut down since 2021. According to him, the government never authorised its reopening. He added that the matter would be investigated.
Governor Bago further revealed that the missionary organisation that established the school had relocated to Ireland, while the foreign road construction workers who later managed the institution had also vacated the area.
