Contradictory accounts have deepened the controversy over how the remains of retired Maj. Gen. Rabe Abubakar were recovered, even as family members questioned the official account of his death in captivity.
Naija News recalls that Abubakar and his wife were abducted on May 30 along the Marabar Musawa-Kafinsoli Road in Matazu Local Government Area of Katsina State.
The Katsina State Government later announced that the retired senior officer died in captivity, attributing his death to complications from diabetes and hypertension.
However, members of his family disputed the claim, insisting that he had no history of either illness. His wife remains in captivity.
A security source, who spoke on condition of anonymity with Premium Times because he was not authorised to speak publicly, said the kidnappers directed state government officials to a location near Karaduwa community, where the body was handed over before being conveyed to Katsina under military escort.
In a phone interview, the source said an ambulance was sent to Karaduwa after communication with the kidnappers.
The source claimed those involved in the recovery were instructed not to bring security personnel to the location.
“They said they did not want any security presence,” the source said.
According to him, the ambulance was directed to a location near Karaduwa bridge, from where the crew was told to turn the vehicle around towards Matazu before the kidnappers arrived on motorcycles with the body.
“After the driver turned the ambulance, they came with the corpse on motorcycles and handed it over,” the source said.
He added that the kidnappers instructed those present not to touch the body until they had left the area. The source said the remains were later conveyed to Matazu, after which military personnel escorted the ambulance to Katsina.
“While returning home, I saw an ambulance escorted by soldiers conveying the corpse to Katsina,” he said.
Another Account Says Body Was Dumped
Another source from the area, who also spoke anonymously, gave a different account. According to him, the body was found by locals near a sawmill in Karaduwa.
The source said, “Near the area where they have machines used for cutting wood for people who buy and sell, that was where it was dumped.
“The locals later discovered the body and notified security personnel, who came, identified the remains, and picked them up in an ambulance escorted by the army to Katsina.”
The accounts have yet to be independently verified, while military authorities have not publicly commented on the circumstances surrounding the recovery of the remains.
In a post on 𝕏 on Sunday, former Kogi West Senator, Dino Melaye, claimed that “heavily armed bandits” handed over the late general’s body in Katsina before returning to a nearby forest in Matazu.
Melaye did not disclose the source of his information.
Family Seeks Answers
One of the late officer’s sons, Isyaka Abubakar, said the family remained uncertain about how the body was recovered.
“When I announced the time for my father’s funeral prayer, many people began asking how the body was recovered. I told them I did not know and that they should direct such questions to the government,” he said in an interview with Deutsche Welle.
He added, “I myself want to know how the body was recovered without rescuing her.”
The family also dismissed reports that Mrs Abubakar had regained freedom.
“Take it from me, our mother is still in captivity. She has not been released,” Isyaka said.
Her continued detention has heightened concern among relatives and residents as efforts to secure her release continue.