The police on Wednesday paraded four suspected kidnappers, including a widow, arrested in the apartment

The Kano State Government on Wednesday pulled down an apartment in which the police arrested suspected kidnappers holding a victim there.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the police on Wednesday paraded the suspected kidnappers, including a widow.

Officials of the Kano Urban Development Agency (KNUPDA) supervised and armed security agents watched as a bulldozer pulled down the building located at Jaba quarters in Ungogo Local Government Area of Kano.

The exercise was also witnessed by a large crowd of residents, who cheered while the bulldozer flattened the structure.

Officials said the development would send a message to residents to be watchful over their communities and for homeowners to be careful in renting out their apartments.

The suspect, Maryam Mohammed, 23, told reporters that she started kidnapping by abducting her former boyfriend who had deceived and refused to marry her after a prolonged courtship.

She said she was introduced into criminality by her uncle, Hamza Dogo, also from Zamfara, after she had parted ways with her former boyfriend.

“The first person we kidnapped was my ex-boyfriend who refused to marry me,” she said.

“After he had dumped me, my uncle asked me to bring him so that we could hold him until he paid money before we would release him.

“When we kidnapped him, his family paid N5million to secure his freedom and out of that amount I was given N800,000 with which I rented that house at Jaba quarters,” the widow said.

However, the police said preliminary investigation revealed that Ms Muhammed is the widow of Sani Ismail of Bidda LGA of Niger State.

The police said Mr Ismail “was a notorious cattle rustler killed in Butsa village of Gusau LGA of Zamfara State while carting away rustled cows.”