At least 35 people have been killed in Nigeria after they kidnapped, despite ransoms being paid for their release.
The gunmen demanded a ransom of one million naira ($1000) per captive.
Criminal gangs in the region have been known to kidnap people as a means to raise money in recent years.
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Fifty-six people were abducted from a village in northern Zamfara, with the captors killing 35 of them and releasing the other 16.
Local government chairman Manniru Haidara Kaura said most of those killed were young people who “were slaughtered like rams”, the BBC reported.
“What happened was that the bandits demanded ransom money, and after some back-and-forth, they were given what they asked for,” Haidara said.
“They then released 18 people, including 17 women and one young boy, on Saturday.
“Only they (the gunmen) know why they killed them. They are senseless and heartless people. They forget that they are killing their own brothers.”
Due to the rising cases of abduction as a means to demand ransoms, a law was enacted in 2022 making it a crime to make ransom payments.
The crime carries a 15-year jail sentence; however, nobody has ever been arrested on those charges.
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