In the shadowy forests of Kogi State, a harrowing tale unfolds. A kidnap victim, his body scarred by thorns and fear, staggered into a remote village on November 25, 2025. Freedom seemed within grasp, until betrayal struck.
The man, whose identity remains shielded for safety, had endured days in captivity. Bandits snatched him near Oshokoshoko, along the treacherous Obajana-Lokoja road. Bound and beaten, he slipped his ropes during a chaotic ambush by Nigerian Army troops.
Troops from the 12 Brigade foiled the bandits' trap that fateful afternoon. Gunfire echoed as soldiers neutralized one attacker, seized an AK-47, and pursued the rest. Amid the frenzy, the victim bolted into the bush, trekking miles through dense undergrowth.
Exhausted, he reached a roadside cluster of homes. Locals offered water, a brief respite. But whispers turned to whispers of doom. Within minutes, his saviors allegedly dialed the bandits: "Why did you let him go?"
The outlaws swarmed back, recapturing him briefly before he fled again. This time, army patrols, still scouring the area spotted his distress signals. Rescued weak and dehydrated, he was rushed to a Lokoja medical center.
Some accounts shared on Social Media, shared in hushed tones with reporters, paints a chilling picture. "Those villagers sit idle by day". "But they feed the monsters at night." No arrests yet; police probe the claims quietly.
This escape coincides with a bandit blitz. On Friday, November 28, gunmen ambushed a vehicle on the same road, vanishing with two travelers. Saturday's siege on Isanlu-Makutu-Idofin claimed more souls, though troops later freed five captives in a fierce firefight.
Raji Adesukami, one lucky survivor from that raid, hid in ditches as bullets flew. "They came like ghosts," he recounted. Now, fury simmers. Online, Kogi indigenes rage against "insider vipers." Protests brew; one X user fumed, "Our own kin sell us for scraps."
Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo vows probes, but silence from police stings. As night falls on vulnerable routes, questions linger: Who watches the watchers? In Kogi's heart, trust frays like a worn rope, one betrayal at a time.
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