By Desire Emmanuel
A teenager who pretended to be deaf and dumb in order to gain sympathy of some members of a community in Kebbi State and who eventually used the opportunity to give information about them to kidnappers has been apprehended by security agencies.
The 13-year-old boy, Abubakar Ibrahim, was accused of spending an entire year pretending to be deaf and dumb in the Makera Gandu area of Birnin Kebbi, the state capital, while secretly serving as an informant for kidnapping gangs.
By posing as someone living with a hearing and voice impairment, he reportedly gained the trust and sympathy of residents, moving freely within the community and even receiving alms from them without raising suspicion.
A source close to the local government who was aware of the development told Impact Nigeria News Online on Tuesday, March 3, that the boy operated in the area by observing daily routines and gathering information on the movement of residents. He would thereafter provide the kidnappers details that would enable them to carry out the abduction without hindrance.
It was gathered that during his interrogation, the boy confessed that he and two others were deployed for similar surveillance missions.
He further claimed that those who trained them in sign language were based in Harasawa area within Birnin Kebbi, while he is originally from Niger State.
