A protected witness of the Department of State Services, DSS, on Thursday gave a harrowing account before the Federal High Court in Abuja of how 49 students and teachers abducted from schools in Orire Local Government Area of Oyo State endured what she described as a “dehumanising” 56-day ordeal in the hands of suspected Ansaru terrorists.
Testifying before Justice Salim Olasupo Ibrahim, the witness — identified only as AAA for security reasons — told the court that the captives were shuttled through six different camps, forced to walk barefoot and made to sleep on grass exposed to heavy rain and scorching sunshine before security forces eventually rescued them.
Led in evidence by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, the witness said the victims included children as young as one-and-a-half years old, as well as pupils from pre-nursery schools.
According to the witness, the attackers stormed the schools on about 12 motorcycles, shooting sporadically to prevent students and teachers from fleeing. Each motorcycle reportedly carried about four victims into the bush, while a Toyota car belonging to one of the teachers was also used to transport some of the captives.
She said that once in the bush, the leader of the kidnappers addressed the victims and told them they were being held not for ransom, but to negotiate the release of detained members of the Ansaru group.
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In a chilling disclosure, the witness revealed that on two separate occasions, two teachers among the captives were taken away and killed — the kidnappers claiming the government was not serious about meeting their demands. She added that the abductors used mobile phones seized from the victims to contact relatives and government officials during negotiations.
Describing conditions in captivity as extremely harsh, the witness said the victims suffered severe hunger and thirst. During water rationing, about four captives had to share a single cup — and even then, the water was so foul-smelling that they had to close their eyes to drink it.
“We had to drink the dirty water just to survive,” she told the court.
On feeding, she said the captives were initially served rice mixed with salt and palm oil. When the salt ran out, they got rice and palm oil alone, and eventually plain white rice once the palm oil was exhausted. Meals were served in plastic containers, and some of the young children were flogged to stop them from struggling for food, she added.
Throughout the 56 days, the victims had no opportunity to bathe or wash their clothes, leaving them extremely dirty by the time of their rescue.
The witness said freedom came at the sixth camp, where security forces engaged the kidnappers in a gun battle and successfully freed the captives.
Defence counsel, Mr Bala Dakum, is expected to cross-examine the witness on Friday, September 18.
Justice Ibrahim, meanwhile, ordered that the defendants remain in DSS custody for the duration of the trial.
The case was adjourned for continuation of trial.
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