The Nigerian Police Force has challenged a report by Amnesty International which claimed that at least 1,100 people were kidnapped across Nigeria within three months, describing the figure as unverified and not cross-checked with relevant security agencies.
Reacting on Sunday, the Force Public Relations Officer, Anthony Placid, questioned the credibility of the data, noting that the organisation did not consult the police before publishing its findings.
He said the police maintain their own records and stressed that any credible crime statistics should be validated with official sources, urging scrutiny of the report’s methodology and data sources.
Amnesty International had earlier called on the Federal Government to urgently address worsening insecurity, particularly in northern Nigeria, where it said mass abductions have become widespread. The organisation stated that between January and April 2026, at least 1,100 people were abducted, mostly in rural communities and among internally displaced persons.
According to Amnesty’s Nigeria Director, Isa Sanusi, the scale of abductions is alarming and may be underreported. The group alleged that victims are frequently subjected to abuses including torture, starvation, rape and forced involvement in violent acts, adding that many families are forced to sell possessions or raise communal funds to meet ransom demands.
The report cited multiple incidents across the country, including attacks in Kwara, Zamfara, Borno, Niger and Kaduna states, where hundreds of people were reportedly abducted in separate operations by armed groups and insurgents. Amnesty warned that the growing wave of abductions is exacerbating humanitarian conditions, disrupting education and increasing vulnerability among rural populations.
Despite these claims, the police reiterated the need for collaboration between civil society organisations and security agencies to ensure accurate and reliable data, especially on sensitive national security issues.
Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu has recently reassured Nigerians of continued government support for the Armed Forces in tackling insurgency and banditry across affected regions.
In a related development, former presidential candidate Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim raised concerns over what he described as the underreporting of mass killings nationwide, warning that the persistent violence reflects a worsening security crisis receiving inadequate local and global attention.
Olawepo-Hashim cited recent attacks in Kebbi, Kwara, Benue, Plateau, Niger and Nasarawa states, where dozens of people were reportedly killed in successive incidents. He argued that the true scale of the violence is being “dangerously underreported and increasingly normalised,” while criticising the muted response of international bodies such as the United Nations and the African Union.
He warned that the perceived global silence signals a troubling devaluation of human lives, as communities continue to suffer repeated attacks with limited attention or intervention.
