Suspected Boko Haram terrorists have reportedly abducted a High Court judge, Justice Haruna Mshelia, with his wife, driver and orderly along Damaturu-Kamiya-Buratai-Buni- Gari Road in Borno State.
It was gathered that the incident occurred on Monday afternoon along the Buratai-Buni-Gari Road as Justice Mshelia was returning to Maiduguri where he serves at the Borno State High Court.
Sources disclosed that the Judge’s vehicle was intercepted by armed men who emerged from the bush and then barricaded the road.
One of the sources said despite an attempt to maneuver and escape, the vehicle was stopped by another group of insurgents.
“The abductees were subsequently taken into the sambisa forest,” he said.
This road is currently the only link between the southern part of Borno and other parts of the state.
Such incidents are unfortunately common in the area, with the most recent attack before this involving a Boko Haram ambush on military vehicles, resulting in the death of a lieutenant and injuries to other soldiers.
The Borno State Police Command has confirmed the abduction of Justice Haruna Mshelia, his wife, orderly and driver.
The state’s police spokesman, ASP Nahum Daso, stated that they received a report from Sani Audu through the Divisional Officer of Biu about the abduction which occurred on June 21, 2024, at about 9 am along Biu-Maiduguri Road, specifically at Jiba town.
He said despite no contact with the terrorists yet, the police are implementing all necessary security measures to ensure the successful rescue of the kidnapped individuals.
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Recall that a retired Mechanical Engineer was abducted on the same road a fortnight ago and is still in the hands of his abductors.
Abductions on this road, unfortunately, happen despite the presence of several military checkpoints as well as a ‘Special Force’ Military Training School located there.
These abductions are believed to be worsened by the very terrible nature of the road, especially from the Borno/Yobe boundary to Biu, but most especially, Magza-Kamiya- Buratai Road.
Due to the dilapidated nature of the road, it takes the best vehicle at least three hours to cover a distance of less than 70 kilometres from the Yobe boundary to Biu in southern Borno.
As such, a person riding on his bicycle can overtake a moving vehicle, hence it has become a sitting duck for abductors.
The importance of the Damaturu-Buratai-Biu road to the commercial and socio-economic development of both Borno and Yobe states in particular and the North-East sub-region, in general, cannot be overstressed, especially with the decade-long closure of Maiduguri-Damboa-Biu road due to the insurgency that ravaged the state.
For now, the Damaturu-Buratai-Biu Road remains the only road linking Borno and Yobe States to the rest of Nigeria from the southern flank socially, culturally and most importantly, economically as dozens of both commercial and passenger vehicles ply that road on daily basis.
The other alternative is the longer and treacherous Maiduguri-Damaturu-Potiskum-Gombe roads.
There is therefore a need for all hands to be on deck to appeal to the Federal Government through the Borno State Government to come to the aid of the suffering people of the affected states to rehabilitate or reconstruct the road which was constructed in the 1970s.
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