A criminal gang in central Nigeria has released 48 children abducted three weeks ago after receiving a ransom payment, local officials and United Nations sources confirmed on Wednesday.
The victims, who are between seven and 12 years old, were set free in two separate groups in Niger State following payments made to their captors.
Abdullahi Sahonrami, a traditional community leader in the Mashegu area of Niger State, said that 40 of the young captives were liberated on Tuesday night, while the remaining eight were released on Wednesday after a ransom was paid.
A United Nations source speaking to Agence France-Presse also confirmed the release of the 48 children, who had endured a double kidnapping ordeal while held hostage in the bush.
Peanut harvest raid and double kidnapping
The ordeal began on August 5 when armed criminals raided a farm outside the village of Sabon Rijiya, seizing 54 children who were working in the fields harvesting peanuts.
The initial gang moved the children to a camp located inside Kainji National Park, a protected wildlife reserve in western Nigeria. They held the young field workers for three days before deciding to release them.
One young girl died while in the hands of the first criminal group.
As the 53 surviving children were making their way back home following their release, they were attacked and abducted a second time by a different gang.
Five children managed to escape into the surrounding area during the second attack. The remaining 48 children were captured and taken into captivity by the second armed group, which is reported to have ties to the Ansaru jihadist organization.
Militant alliances and profit motives
Criminal gangs operating across the region generally have no ideological direction and are motivated solely by financial profit from ransom demands.
In some cases, however, these criminal groups cultivate ties with jihadist militants operating primarily in the northeastern regions of Nigeria, Africa's most populous country.
The bandits occasionally collaborate with jihadist fighters, while at other times clashing with them over the control of territory.
Forest hideouts and weak state presence
Gangs specializing in mass kidnappings and cattle rustling have operated for years in northwestern and central Nigeria, attacking villages and looting homes.
Some known criminal syndicates actively enforce illegal taxes on local farmers seeking access to their fields, as well as on mining operations in rural areas.
Violence from both criminal gangs and jihadist factions has been escalating across Niger State, where armed groups have established camps deep within forested areas and inside protected hunting reserves.
The presence of the federal state remains limited across vast rural provinces in Nigeria, leaving under-resourced security forces unable to cope with security demands.
