KANO, Nigeria, April 16 (Reuters) – Gunmen in the northern Nigerian state of Kano killed a policeman and abducted a Germany citizen on Monday as they travelled to a construction site, police said.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The gunmen’s motive was unclear. Kidnapping for ransom is common in parts of Nigeria.
Five gunmen ambushed a vehicle carrying construction workers and opened fire on them along Sabon Titi Madobi road at around 7:45 a.m. (0645 GMT), a police spokesman said. The road is on the outskirts of the state’s capital city, also called Kano.
The vehicle was carrying staff of Dantata & Sawoe Construction Company, a Nigerian firm, to a building site, Kano police said in a statement. A police sergeant, who was part of a protection unit escorting the group, was killed and the German man was abducted, the statement added.
The “manhunt of the abductors is ongoing,” said Kano state police in a statement. The German embassy in Nigeria declined to comment. The company also did not immediately respond to calls and an email requesting comment.
(Reporting by Desmond Mgboh Additional reporting by Paul Carsten in Abuja and Alexis Akwagyiram in Lagos Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg)