Paul Orude, Bauchi
The abductors of a 20-year-old female student of the Bauchi State University Gadau have sent a disturbing message to her family, saying that they don’t need ransom money but the victim’s virginity.
The anguish of family of Patience Kushi, a 100 level Pharmacology student, was further compounded when another message came from her captors claiming that the abducted lady was dead.
Patience’s father, Mr Emmanuel Kushi, a retired civil servant, told Daily Sun that the family’s ordeal began on Wednesday, June 24, when his daughter left the house and has not been seen since then.
‘Your daughter is with us (BLACK AXE CONFRETANITY) we don’t need your money, we only need her virginity. Don’t even think of looking for her,’ a message from her purported abductors was sent via Patience’s phone to her family
Speaking with journalists at his house on Saturday, Kushi said his daughter left his younger brother’s house at Rafin Zurfin in the state where she had been living for over three years to his house in Karin Tafawa when she was abducted.
He explained that ‘she left on that fateful at about 2:00 pm. She told my younger brother that she was coming to my house at Kafin Tafawa (a distance of about four kilometres) to pick something and he gave her permission to come.
‘By evening my younger brother’s wife kept calling her line to know if she had arrived but there was no response; they thought she was working at my house.
‘Later on, they tried again but the number was now switched off. Then the next day (Thursday) at about 1:00 pm, her aunt, my younger brother’s wife, called me and asked why I retained Patience and didn’t let her go back and she asked if there was any problem.
‘I told her that I didn’t see Patience because she had not come to my house. She expressed shock about what I told her and she then said she will call her friend to confirm.’
The father explained that his brother’s wife told him that when she called Patience’s friend he told her that he too tried calling her that same Wednesday and that though her number rang, there was no response.
‘So, he sent a text message to her number, then there was a reply from her number that: “do you think you will ever see her again? Fool,” he stated.
Kushi said he returned from the farm on Thursday and saw a text message on his phone sent from the abductors using his daughter’s number which read: “Father, your daughter is with us (BLACK AXE CONFRETANITY we don’t need your money what we need is her virginity. Don’t bother looking for her.”
Patience’s father said that he received another text from the kidnappers Saturday morning, this time informing him that she was dead.
‘This morning, at exactly 10.25 am, they sent me another text message and said: “She is dead”. We’ve been trying to call her but he number has been switched off.’
He said that the family has reported the matter to the Yelwa Divisional Police Headquarters.
Kushi said that the family has resorted to prayers to seek God’s intervention to bring their daughter back safely as they await the outcome of a police investigation.
He described his daughter as well-behaved and very obedient, that ‘she always jokes with me and if you see us, you’ll think she is my granddaughter.’
The mother of the abducted student said she has been disturbed since she heard the news on Thursday.
‘I have not been finding it very easy since I got the news that she was nowhere to be found. I got the news on Thursday afternoon. One thing I know is that my daughter is not dead. I believe she will come back alive,’ Patience’s mother said.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Bauchi State Command, DSP Ahmed Wakil, confirmed the incident and said that the police were currently investigating the matter.
