We Were Freed by Kidnappers Before Security Forces Reached Us – Rescued Teacher

One of the teachers rescued after the recent school abduction has revealed that he and the other captives had already been released by their abductors before they eventually encountered government rescue officials.

Speaking during a telephone interview with Nigeria Info FM on Saturday, the teacher gave a detailed account of the final moments of their captivity, describing how he became the last person to leave the terrorists’ camp after the metal shackle fastened to his hand became jammed.

According to him, the restraint broke while it was being removed, leaving part of it locked around his wrist as the other abductees were led away.

“When they released us, everybody had gone,” he recalled.

“One of them said maybe they should cut off my hand. The other said, ‘No, they should not cut off his hand. We will look for a way to remove the anchor.'”

The teacher said the abductors eventually found a small rope, which they used to remove the restraint without causing him serious injury.

As he hurried to catch up with the others, he said the leader of the group suddenly called him back at gunpoint, leaving him fearing the worst.

However, rather than harming him, the commander reportedly directed him towards the safest route out of the forest. Another teacher accompanied him as they made their way through the bush in search of the other released captives.

The group trekked for between 45 minutes and one hour before reaching a point where motorcycles were waiting to transport them to a nearby village.

He explained that the motorcycle riders later stopped about one and a half hours away, forcing the principal, vice-principal, teachers, students and pupils to complete the journey on foot.

“We trekked for one hour 30 minutes before we got to where the government came to rescue us,” he said.

His account suggests that the victims had already regained their freedom and were making their way out of the forest before they eventually met security personnel and government officials who received them.

The teacher’s testimony offers fresh insight into the circumstances surrounding their release, although security authorities have yet to publicly respond to his account of the sequence of events. It also remains unclear whether the government officials’ role was to receive the freed victims, provide protection or facilitate their evacuation from the area.