13-Year-Old Boy Arrested for Kidnap and Murder of 10-Year-Old After Ransom Payment in Plateau

The Plateau State Police Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit has arrested a 13-year-old boy, Umar Hashim, for his alleged involvement in the kidnapping and murder of 10-year-old Tasiu Abdullahi.

Tasiu Abdullahi was kidnapped and killed despite a ransom payment in the Rikkos community, Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State, in December 2024.

On Tuesday, Hashim was paraded alongside six other suspects allegedly involved in the crime at the Plateau State Police Command headquarters.

Hashim stated that he purchased a new SIM card from Usman Abdullahi on December 12 at a registration center and asked him to register it.

However, the registrar told him to return later due to network issues and requested an older family member’s NIN for verification since he was underage.

He was later arrested after visiting the SIM registration center in the Katako area of Jos North Local Government Area. Security operatives informed him that his phone number had been used to collect ransom from Tasiu’s family.

“I went home, took my brother’s NIN and returned to the center. The registrar told me that my SIM card registration was being processed and asked me to buy a recharge card for him. When I returned, he claimed the registration was complete and handed me the SIM card,” the boy said.

“I had no knowledge that the SIM card was used to demand ransom as alleged by the security operatives.’’

Usman Abdullahi, the SIM card registrar, confirmed that the 13-year-old boy had purchased a new SIM card from him. However, he claimed that after completing the registration, he handed the SIM card over to a friend.

Abdullahi stated that he was unaware of what his friend did with the SIM card before it was eventually returned to the boy.