One of the 85 kidnap victims of Wanzamai village in Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State, Zainab Abdullahi, has escaped from the bandits’ camp and returned home.

The remaining 84 are still in captivity.

Speaking to The PUNCH on the phone late Friday night, an indigene of the area, Abubakar Na’allah, said Zainab escaped on Friday night and has been reunited with her parents in the village.

Na’allah said Zainab was among the kidnapped girls who were assigned by the bandits to fetch firewood to cook for the victims in the bandits’ camp.

Explaining how she escaped, he said, “When Zainab and other girls went to fetch firewood, she (Zainab) decided to run away and was able to come back home.”

Na’allah said the young girl was well and hearty although she looked pale.

He expressed disgust over the refusal of the bandits to release the abducted persons despite the N3 million they collected from the Wanzamai community.

Recall that the bandits had levied the Wanzamai community the sum of N3 million for the release of the 85 kidnapped victims but after collecting the money, they (bandits) insisted that an additional amount should be paid.

The bandits have also insisted that the military personnel deployed to Wanzamai village should be withdrawn from the village.

But the state Commissioner for Security, DIG Mamman Tsafe (retd.), told The PUNCH that the state government would not withdraw the military personnel attached to that village.

“We will not withdraw the military personnel no matter the pressure from the bandits,” he said. (Saturday PUNCH: Text, Excluding Headline)