Rédaction Africa Links 24 with BDO Mamadou
Published on 2024-02-26 13:28:36
In just two months in the Mayo Tsanaga department, about a hundred people have been abducted with ransom demands totaling over 250 million, according to the victims’ families. Mayo-Tsanaga is a department in Cameroon located in the Far North region, along the border with Nigeria. Its capital is Mokolo.
“We have been losing sleep since the kidnappings started. Our children have been taken, and every time, the kidnappers demand millions of CFA francs from us. Today, we are at our breaking point. Even if my child is kidnapped, how will I pay?” explains a victim’s parent.
Following the abduction of a merchant in the town of Hina, the community mobilized to call upon the defense and security forces, involving members of the vigilance committee.
A manhunt was launched to track down the kidnappers, located in their hiding spots after a forceful raid by the Hina gendarmerie brigade, supervised by the Mayo Tsanaga gendarmerie company commander.
After surrounding the area, a bandit was arrested and subdued. The young man goes by the name Aota Garga, 26 years old, and was found in possession of a firearm with three magazines, 28 rounds of ammunition, a bulletproof vest, and various talismans.
Following his arrest, he confessed that there were three of them, originating from three neighboring countries: N’Djamena in Chad, Adamawa State in Nigeria, and Garoua in the North.
However, much more needs to be done in terms of security, particularly in strengthening collaboration with the vigilance committee members who are familiar with their localities to apprehend the other kidnappers who are still at large.
It appears that besides the atrocities of Boko Haram, there are also highway bandits and other kidnappers lurking in the area.
Read the original article(French) on Mimi Mefo Info
