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A 20-year-old suspect, Rabiu Safiyanu, is in police custody in connection with a kidnapping incident that resulted in the death of a four-year-old boy, the Bauchi State Police Command has confirmed.
The command’s spokesman, Nafiu Habib, in a statement on Sunday, explained that detectives attached to the ‘C’ Divisional Headquarters in Bauchi, led by the Divisional Police Officer, effected the arrest following a reported case of a missing child.
The reported case, according to the statement, was made on Saturday, March 21, by one Salisu Yunusa of Nasarawa Madina Quarters, stating that his son, Yunusa Salisu, had gone missing on March 18.
The father further explained that on March 19, 2026, he received a call from an unidentified number demanding a ransom of N500,000, out of which he paid N100,000, but the child was not released.
He said that investigation into the matter led to the arrest of one Rabiu Safiyanu, 20, of the same address, a friend of the complainant’s younger brother who had free access to the house.
According to Habib, “During interrogation, the suspect reportedly confessed to abducting the child, strangling him, and dumping his body at Warinje Hills before making further ransom demands.”
The command disclosed that the decomposing body of the victim was later recovered from a shallow grave, with visible marks of strangulation; a rope suspected to have been used in committing the crime was also found at the scene.
The statement added that the Officer in Charge of the Police Clinic confirmed the victim dead, noting that the body was photographed and subsequently released to the family for burial at the site on public health grounds.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Sani-Omolori Aliyu, according to the statement, had directed the State Criminal Investigation Department to take over the case for discreet investigation and prosecution of the culprit.
He urged residents to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities in their communities to security agencies.
Man arrested over kidnap, killing of four-year-old in Bauchi
