Bandits abduct Kebbi High Court judge, Justice Faruku Hassan Bunza

A Kebbi State High Court judge, Justice Faruku Hassan Bunza, has been abducted by bandits from his home in Bunza Local Government Area.

The judge was seized in the early hours of Sunday at his residence along Zogirma Road. Sources said the abduction took place on Saturday night shortly after he returned from a trip to Sokoto.

“He had just returned from Sokoto when the gunmen stormed his residence and took him away,” one source said. No one else in the house was harmed. The attackers were reported to have been shouting sporadically before leaving with the judge.

The incident was immediately reported to the relevant authorities, including the leadership of the High Court.

The Police Public Relations Officer for the Kebbi State Command, SP Bashir Usman, confirmed the abduction. “I can confirm that Hon. Justice Faruku Hassan Bunza was abducted from his residence in Bunza around midnight,” he said.

Mr Usman added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Umar Muhammad Hadejia, had promptly deployed tactical and intelligence operatives to secure the judge’s safe rescue. “As we speak, our personnel are combing identified locations, including forest areas, to ensure that the judge is rescued alive and unharmed,” he said.

A senior official of the Kebbi State High Court, who asked not to be named, described the incident as a painful development for the judiciary. “I am not authorised to speak formally, but this is a painful moment for us. To hear that one of our judges was abducted at his residence is very disturbing,” the official said.

The management of the High Court has already met with heads of security agencies in the state to discuss measures aimed at securing the judge’s immediate release.

No group had claimed responsibility for the abduction at the time of writing.