How gunmen in camouflage uniforms kidnapped us on the Lagos-Ibadan road — Victim

Aminat Taiwo, 22, was one of the lucky victims who escaped alive from the Lagos-Ibadan hideout of the kidnappers. While some were killed, Aminat and his friend Tobi Orekoya were released on Sunday evening after paying a ransom of 3.2 million naira. In this interview withSODIQ OJUROUNGBE, she recounted the horrific experience she had at the hands of the kidnappers dressed in security uniforms

How did you become a victim and how would you describe the experience?

It was truly a horrible experience for me. There was no traffic on the road and it was not night. We were on our way to Ibadan when we discovered that kidnappers had ambushed vehicles traveling at that time on the Lagos-Ibadan highway. They ordered us to lie down and started shooting sporadically.

Some people who wanted to flee were hit by bullets. It was terrible and not a good experience at all, but all thanks to God.

The incident happened around 5:00 p.m. Friday.

I was coming from Abeokuta to attend a friend's wedding in Ibadan when we were attacked. We boarded a Sienna space van from Panseke Park; there were eight of us in the vehicle. Our vehicle took the Isiun-Ogere road to connect the Lagos-Ibadan highway.

How many people were kidnapped and where were you held?

Three of us from our vehicle were kidnapped, the other victims were other vehicles. Many people have been victims of it. Some people in their private cars were also attacked and some people escaped at midnight as we were taken to a deep forest.

The kidnappers were more than 30, they covered their faces. They wore soldier and police uniforms.

They were armed to the teeth; they have guns, swords, knives and other dangerous weapons.

On the way, they asked us to lie down. They took all our money and our phones. They collected gold chains, wristwatches and other jewelry.

We moved through the bush for several hours; they didn't give us any water or food. We were licking the water off the leaves inside the forest.

During the two days I spent with them, we were moving through the forest, we don't stay too long in one place before they move us to another place.

They had no house or anywhere to hide us. We sleep wherever the night meets us; we slept in the forest for two days. Some of us will sleep on trees, while others will sleep on grass.

An escape attempt?

We can't try to escape because since two guys escaped the first night, they changed their strategy. They are always surrounding us, so we cannot attempt anything in any way.

We used to hear people's voices because most of the places we slept belonged to farmers. We saw cassava, maize and other plantations inside the forest.

When our captors discover that we hear the voices of nearby villagers, they will move us to another location.

Do you know the identity of your captors?

Yes, they were Hausa but they understand and speak Yoruba fluently. Many of them are young, some can't be more than 15 or 16 years old. They carried guns like AK 47s.

They spoke Yoruba, but they are Hausa. They don't understand any language other than Yoruba and Hausa. If they hear us speaking English, they will beat us.

How were you treated?

We were really mistreated; they beat us. The men suffered the most because they put ropes around their necks and dragged them around.

I wasn't really mistreated because when I told them my name was Aminat, they said, "you are a Muslim, and we worship the same, Allah."

There were more than 20 of us who were kidnapped and some were even killed inside the forest.

Will you ever take the Lagos-Ibadan route again or embark on a long distance road trip?

I will never be able to travel this road again in my life. Even if I want to pick up my NYSC, I won't go by road. Instead, I'll fly to wherever I'm posted. The government must help us do something about this road.

How many people stayed with them after your ransom was paid?

I can't say but I know we left a lot of people there; they only released those who paid.

Many people were injured, some were shot in the head, and there was no one to treat them.

They didn't give us any food or water. The kidnappers didn't eat as well, they only ate raw cassava, they'll just uproot it, peel it and eat it like that.

A policeman advised me to negotiate with the kidnappers - Victim's father

Kayode Taiwo, the father of Aminat Taiwo who was abducted and released along the Lagos-Ibadan highway spoke to SODIQ OJUROUNGBE about how he was able to secure the r...