Kaduna — The Adara Development Association (ADA) has raised serious concerns over the reported abduction of 166 worshippers by armed bandits in Kurmin Wali community, Afogo Ward, Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, accusing security agencies and local authorities of downplaying the incident.
In a press release signed by its president, Chief Sebastine A. Barde, ADA stated that the abduction occurred on Sunday, January 18, 2026, when gunmen reportedly stormed church services in the community.
According to the association, worshippers at two Cherubim and Seraphim churches—Church I and Church II—were seized during services at around 10 a.m., while members of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) were abducted as they returned home from worship.
ADA claimed that a total of 177 individuals were initially taken, with 11 managing to escape, leaving 166 still in captivity. The breakdown of the abducted worshippers, according to the association, is as follows: 50 from Cherubim and Seraphim Church I, 92 from Cherubim and Seraphim Church II, and 24 from ECWA.
“The victims were taken at gunpoint and marched into the forest, while desperate efforts by the community to alert security agencies yielded no immediate rescue operation,” ADA alleged.
The group accused the Kaduna State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Muhammad Rabiu, and the Chairman of Kajuru Local Government Area, Mr. Dauda Madaki, of downplaying the incident and publicly denying the abductions following their visit to the community on Monday, January 19.
ADA described the officials’ denial as “painful and misleading,” claiming that reports of the incident were dismissed as rumours supposedly spread by “conflict entrepreneurs.”
In response, the association said it had submitted a full list of the 166 abducted persons and challenged the police commissioner and council chairman to provide evidence to refute the claims. “Survivors of the attack and relatives of the abducted victims are available to substantiate these facts,” the statement added.
The group has demanded a public apology from both officials for what it described as the suppression of the truth and called on Governor Uba Sani to intervene, exercise moral leadership, and ensure accountability.
Expressing concern over persistent insecurity in Adara communities, ADA appealed to the federal and state governments, as well as “people of goodwill,” to urgently assist in rescuing the abducted worshippers and securing vulnerable areas.
As of the filing of this report, neither the Kaduna State Police Command nor the Kajuru Local Government chairman had issued an updated response to the ADA’s allegations.
