Some bandits who kidnapped a Kaduna State female judge and her four children were reported to have killed the eldest son while threatening to kill the other children if the ransom demanded was not paid.
The Chief Executive Officer of the House of Justice, Gloria Ballason, who disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, condemned the abduction of the Customary Court judge, Janet Galadima, and her four children as well as the “murder of her 14-year-old son by the terrorists.”
Ballason said Galadima was abducted on the night of Sunday 23 June 2024 along with her four sons at their residence in the state by the hoodlums while her husband, a medical doctor, was away on duty.
“The abductors reported to have been about fifteen, took their captives hostage and demanded a huge sum as ransom. On Tuesday 2 July 2024, the terrorists shot dead the 14-year first son of the Judge when the ransom demanded could not be obtained,” she said.
Ballason, a human rights lawyer, described the murder of Victor, the 14-year-old son of the judge as “grisly and blood-curdling”, stating that no parent deserved the horror of watching their child being killed in such a cold, callous manner.
She called on the Nigerian security agencies, the governor of Kaduna State, the Nigeria Bar Association, and the judiciary to protect the lives of Galadima and her children and ensure justice is served.
Meanwhile, the state chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association in a statement issued by its Public Relations Officer, Dr Shuaibu Joga, condemned the development and urged the security agencies to rise to the occasion.
The statement read, “Following the incident, we visited the husband and interacted with him and he informed us that the kidnappers had made a demand of N300 million to secure their release. While the security agencies had been informed and negotiations with the kidnappers were ongoing, we received the shocking news today that the first son was killed to force payment of the said sum.
“In response, we are calling for an emergency SEC meeting today and a press conference to further call on the authorities to expedite action on securing their immediate release and also the release of our other doctor kidnapped 6 months ago.
“We call for calm from members and request all to stay safe while we engage the necessary security organs to end this needless wanton evil.”
A family source said the kidnappers who initially demanded a ransom of N300m later reduced to amount to N298m to secure the release of the abducted judge and their remaining children.
“The wife and 4 children of Dr. Musa Gimba Dutse were kidnapped on 23/06/24 from his residence in Kaduna while he was away in Kano for an official assignment.
“Security agencies were duly informed after the incident with kidnappers initially demanding N300 million (they reduced it to N298 million) to secure their release. While negotiations were ongoing, the kidnappers murdered Dr. Musa’s eldest son Victor (14yrs) on July 2, 2024, to force payment of the ransom,” he said.
As of the time of filing this report, there was no official statement from the state government or the state police command.
When contacted on the telephone, the Command’s Police Public Relations, Mansir Hassan, could not be reached as the line indicated “busy” and a text message sent by our correspondent was not responded to.