A six-year-old boy kidnapped from his family home in Kunkumi, Makarfi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, has been rescued unhurt by the Kaduna State Police Command. According to the police, the boy was found being held inside a shop in the same community, and two suspects are now in custody.
The child, identified as Samaila Haruna, was reunited with his family after what the command described as an intelligence-led operation. A third suspect, known only as Jamesy and said to be from Kabuga in Kano State, is still being sought.
Taken from home while father was away
The police spokesman in Kaduna, DSP Mansir Hassan, said in a statement that the boy's father, 30-year-old Haruna Bala of Kunkumi, reported the abduction at about 6:00 a.m. Daily Post gave the date of the report as November 8, 2026, while Channels TV said the report came on Monday, so the exact day remains slightly unclear across the accounts.
According to the police account published by Daily Post: "Bala reported that unidentified individuals invaded his residence in his absence and abducted his six-year-old son."
From N300,000 to N30,000
The abductors reportedly asked the family for N300,000 to free the child. Police said the father bargained with them and eventually handed over N30,000, a tenth of the original demand. The statement did not say whether the boy was released after that payment or found only through the police operation.
Traced to a shop in the same village
Detectives followed leads that took them to a shop right inside Kunkumi, where the boy was being kept. The police statement put it this way: "Following intelligence-led sustained operation, Police operatives traced the suspects to a shop at Kunkumi where the victim was kept in captivity and arrested."
Those arrested were named as Usman Ahmed, 22, who lives on Yarkasuwa Zoo Road in Kano State, and Abdullahi Yakubu, 25, a resident of Kunkumi in Makarfi LGA. Officers also recovered a mobile phone which, according to the police, the gang used to make the ransom demand. It is being kept as an exhibit.
The suspects have not been charged in court, according to the available accounts, and their side of the story has not been reported. The allegations against them remain police claims until tested in court.
Manhunt for 'Jamesy'
The third suspect, Jamesy, reportedly escaped when the others were picked up. Police said efforts to find him had been stepped up and that he would be brought to justice. Investigation into the case is continuing.
In the words of the command's statement: "The victim has been rescued unhurt and reunited with his family, while the case is under investigation."
