After holding them in captivity for 75 days, bandits, Saturday, released another batch of 10 of the remaining 31 abducted students of the Bethel Baptist High School, Damishi, Kaduna.
Chairman of the Kaduna State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Rev. Joseph Hayab, broke the cherry news via a telephone conversation with journalists Saturday evening in Kaduna.
The CAN chairman disclosed that the students were released Saturday evening and had been reunited with their parents.
With this development, 21 students are still being held by the bandits in the forest.
“The bandits have released 10 more of our students to us this evening, remaining 21.
They were released this evening and parents were taking their children home.”
This brings to a total of 100 students that have been released so far, including those who escaped from captivity
However, freedom came to the 10 students released on Saturday at a high cost as their parents were said to have paid a N20 million ransom to facilitate their release.
Again, a total of over N200 million have been paid by parents to the bandits so far as fresh ransom is paid for each batch of students released.
Despite the joy that heralded the latest release, Rev. Joseph Hayab, the CAN chairman, lamented the instalmental release
“What the bandits are doing, is to torture us,” Hayab lamented. “We are celebrating the return of 10 students, but we are having the challenge of those parents who have been waiting and every time their children are not among those released.
“It is very painful, but we thank God that 10 students are back,” he regretted.
