INSPECTOR-GENERAL of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun has launched a Special Intervention Squad (SIS) in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) following spiralling cases of abductions in the territory’s sprawling communities.
Egbetokun launched the squad at the Force Headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, January 17.
The SIS is a standby team of officers specially trained to provide rapid response to significant crises and violent attacks in border communities within the FCT.
In October 2023, The ICIR reported that the NPF would launch the SIS in 10 pilot states and the FCT, after which it would be launched in the remaining 26 states.
Egbetokun said the first ten states were selected based on the assessment of recent violent crimes carried out across the country.
“The squad will be deployed in each command to deal with the state’s salient security challenges,” Egbetokun had said.
The ICIR reports that FCT has recently witnessed a surge in kidnappings, particularly within the Bwari Area Council and other border communities.
Separate successful kidnappings have been carried out in recent weeks, with many abductees dying at the hands of their captors.
Residents of Bwari, especially those who live in the developing parts of the area council, have vacated their homes out of fear.
The most recent case of kidnap in the area council occurred on January 10 in Kawu. This community shares boundaries with Niger and Kaduna states, and about 23 residents were whisked away by the abductors.
Apart from Bwari, many other parts of the FCT have also become targets for kidnappers.
In December 2023, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) named three Area Councils, Kuje, Abaji and Bwari, as places with the highest records of kidnapping in the FCT.
Several kidnap cases were recorded within these areas in the past weeks, including the mass abduction of about 23 residents of Dei-dei, Bwari, and 12 others in Gbaupe, a rural community along Airport Road, Abuja.
Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via [email protected] or @ije_le on Twitter.