A witness for the Department of State Services (DSS) has told the Federal High Court in Abuja how 49 students and teachers abducted from schools in Orire Local Government Area of Oyo State endured 56 days in captivity.
The witness, identified as AAA for security reasons, told Justice Salim Olasupo Ibrahim on Thursday that the captives were moved through six locations during their ordeal.
She said they were forced to remain barefoot, sleep on grass and endure heavy rain and intense sunshine before security forces rescued them.
Led in evidence by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, the witness said the presence of children made the ordeal particularly distressing.
She said children as young as one and a half years old, including pupils from pre-nursery schools, were among those held captive.
According to the witness, the victims were abducted when armed men invaded their schools on motorcycles, shooting sporadically and preventing students and teachers from escaping.
She said the attackers arrived on about 12 motorcycles and took the victims into the bush, with each motorcycle carrying about four people.
A Toyota car belonging to one of the teachers was also used to transport some of the victims, she told the court.
The witness said the leader of the kidnappers later addressed the captives and told them they were being held to negotiate the release of members of the Ansaru group, rather than for ransom.
She also told the court that two teachers were taken away and killed on separate occasions after the kidnappers claimed the government was not serious about meeting their demands.
The kidnappers also used mobile phones seized from the victims to contact their relatives and government officials during negotiations, she said.
The witness described the conditions in captivity as harsh, saying the victims suffered severe hunger and were often left without enough water.
She said that during periods of water rationing, about four victims had to share a single cup of water.
The water was also dirty and had a bad smell, forcing the captives to close their eyes before drinking it.
“We had to drink the dirty water just to survive,” she said.
The witness said the captives were initially fed rice, salt and palm oil. When the salt ran out, they were given rice and palm oil before eventually being left with only plain white rice when the palm oil was exhausted.
She said the kidnappers flogged some of the younger children to stop them from struggling for food, with meals served in plastic containers.
The victims also had no opportunity to bathe or wash their clothes throughout the 56 days in captivity, she told the court.
She said they were extremely dirty by the time they were rescued.
According to the witness, the rescue took place at the sixth camp after security forces engaged the kidnappers in a gun battle and freed the victims.
Defence counsel, Bala Dakum, is expected to cross-examine the witness on Friday, September 18.
Justice Salim Olasupo Ibrahim also ordered that the defendants remain in DSS custody throughout the trial.
Erizia Rubyjeana
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