Gunmen have abducted and k!lled IIiyasu Abubakar Sadiq, a lecturer and researcher at the Division of Agricultural Colleges, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.
The Jigawa State-born lecturer was abducted at about 10am on Sunday, September 20, 2026, from his farmhouse at Tudun Muntsira, a community behind the Samaru Campus of ABU.
His body was reportedly found around 2pm at Karau-Karau village.
According to Daily Trust, before he was taken away, Dr Sadiq’s last words to his wife, Hajiya Baraka, were a desperate plea to care for their children.
“Baraka! Baraka! Take care of my children. Please, have mercy,” he repeatedly called out as the gunmen dragged him away from the house, according to his widow.
The lecturer, who was also a farmer, had an orchard and a farmhouse where he often stayed with his family.
Although he had a house within the university quarters, he would sometimes take his family to the farm before returning to his official residence.
Recounting the incident on Thursday, Baraka said they were at the farmhouse when they suddenly heard their dog barking.
Her husband stepped outside to find out what was happening but shortly returned, shouting, “Innalillahi wa inna ilaihi raji’un.”
“He then told me to help him close the door. While we were struggling to shut the door, the attackers pushed from outside to gain entry. They were saying, ‘open the door or we will come in and kill you,’” she said.
The attackers, four armed men, eventually broke part of the door and forced their way into the house.
Baraka said her husband attempted to run, but the gunmen threatened to harm his family if he escaped.
“They told him that even if he runs away, his family is still here,” she said.
She said the attackers did not cover their faces and that all four were armed with guns.
According to her, two of the gunmen held her husband while the other two turned to her, demanding money and asking where the family kept their valuables.
She said she repeatedly explained that they were not the owners of the farm and had no money.
“I told them that we don’t have money and that we are not the owners of this farm. I said, we only came here to work. When they didn’t believe me, I told them to search the house to see if there is money,” she said.
Baraka said the attackers accused her of lying, after which one of them threatened to k!ll her.
“But I told him that if he k!lls me, I would d!e a martyr and the sin would be on him because he is not the one who gave me life,” she said.
She said the attacker slapped her and ordered the children, who were already crying, to keep quiet.
“I told the children to keep quiet and pray. I told them that we were Muslims and prayer was our weapon,” she said.
The gunmen then demanded her husband’s phone and ATM card. Baraka said she told them that she did not have access to his phone or bank details.
“When they realised that we had no money, they said they would take my husband away. We pleaded with the attackers to spare him, reminding them that we have young children who depend on him, but that did not stop them,” she said.
The youngest of their children is about eight months old.
After the gunmen dragged Dr Sadiq away, Baraka said she ran out of the house with one of the children and walked through the crops to a nearby compound, where she raised the alarm.
“I told a woman there that they had taken our husband away. People in the area were alerted,” she said.
She said community members subsequently went into the nearby bushes in search of the kidnappers, but their initial search yielded no result.
“After some hours, I was informed that the corpse of my husband had been found around Karau-Karau village and that he had been shot. I was told they shot him in the head. They took the items on him and left him there,” she said.
Dr Sadiq was formerly Head of Programme, Pest Management, at the Division of Agricultural Colleges, ABU, Zaria.
He taught courses in Entomology and Agriculture before his death and left behind two wives and nine children.
His uncle, Alhaji Yahaya Lawal Kalli, described his d3ath as a devastating loss, saying the deceased had lived under his care until he completed his education.
“His father and I share the same mother and father and the deceased lived under my care until he completed his education. He sought my advice on virtually everything he wanted to do until his d3ath.
“He was a hardworking person who deeply valued family ties. We will greatly miss him. I pray Almighty Allah to accept his Shahada and grant him Jannatul Firdaus,” he said.
The Director of the Division of Agricultural Colleges, Prof. Bashir Ahmed Babaji, also described Dr Sadiq as a reliable and hardworking staff member who was committed to his duties.
Babaji said the deceased had previously served as a Head of Department and was highly regarded within the college.
He described his d3ath as a tragic loss to the division and the wider university community.
According to him, the university was initially informed about the abduction by the division’s security officer, although details were sketchy at the time.
“But after some time, I was informed that the staff member had been k!lled by his abductors,” he said.
Babaji lamented that kidnapping remained one of the major security challenges confronting the country, particularly in the North-West.
He said ABU had experienced similar incidents involving academic staff in the past, although previous cases known to the institution had not resulted in loss of life.