Rescued captive recounts bleeding through the night after knife attack during abduction

Joshua Daniel, one of six victims rescued from kidnappers in Nigeria's Kogi State, described a harrowing night of bleeding after an abductor slashed his hand with a knife as he attempted to flee. The incident occurred on Sunday, August 9, 2026, when armed criminals attacked commuters along the Ojuwo–Ajengo–Memarebo and Ojiwo–Itobe roads in the Ofu Local Government Area.

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The incident happened after they (abductors) already had control over us. I saw a little space, then I decided to run. I ran into a nearby bush, then I fell. So, one of them who was chasing me brought a knife to cut my head. So I blocked it with one of my hands; that is when the cutlass landed here and cut my vein. So, I was bleeding throughout the night.

Daniel recounted the terrifying moment he fell while trying to escape into a bush, only to be confronted by an abductor wielding a knife. He managed to block the blow with his hand, sustaining a deep cut that severed a vein. "So I was bleeding throughout the night," he said, adding that the bleeding eventually stopped after he applied herbs to the wound.

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But the bleeding stopped this morning when I got some herbs and put them on the wound before the bleeding stopped.

The rescued victims were freed by troops from the Nigerian Army, collaborating with the Nigerian Navy, Nigeria Police Force, local vigilantes, and hunters. The joint security team engaged the fleeing kidnappers in a fierce firefight, overwhelming them with superior firepower. The statement from the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Appolonia Anele, noted that the criminals escaped into the forest with gunshot wounds.

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Fulani, Kogi… one of them is named Peter. They spoke Igala, Fulani and Hausa.

Daniel also noted that the abductors spoke Igala, Fulani, and Hausa, suggesting the use of multiple languages was a tactic to confuse captives. He expressed gratitude to the rescue team for their timely intervention. However, he mourned the death of a local hunter who died during the operation and a police officer who sustained injuries. Another rescued victim, Ngozi Stephen, revealed that the kidnappers demanded ransoms ranging from N50 million to N100 million from the captives.

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So they told me, tell this person N50 million, tell this person N100 million, tell this person N70 million. That was how they were sharing it.