Gunmen abducted three Chinese workers
after a shootout that left a police officer dead in the
central part of the country, police said Saturday.
"Three Chinese nationals were abducted by some
unknown gunmen within the early hours of Friday,"
a senior police officer told AFP, requesting
anonymity.
He said the gunmen had stormed a quarry outside
Lokoja and engaged the policemen on guard in a
shootout.
"One policeman was killed while another sustained
gunshot wounds," he said.
He said the assailants escaped with their hostages on
foot through the bush, adding that police were on
their trail.
It was unknown whether the kidnappers were
planning to demand a ransom.
Kogi state has seen a wave of abductions targeting
foreigners this year.
Two weeks ago, two other Chinese nationals were
kidnapped in the state, while an American
missionary was taken from her school last month.
Also read: Unidentified men abduct beer distributor in
Ogun
The missionary, who works in the village of
Emiworo where her Free Methodist Church runs a
community organisation, was released last week.
State police said they were unaware of any ransom
paid for her liberation.
Foreign nationals have often been kidnapped in
Nigeria by local gangs who typically release hostages
following a ransom payment.
Such abductions are especially common in the
southern, oil-producing Niger Delta, where
expatriates working with large oil companies have
been a frequent target.
A number of foreigners have also been kidnapped in
the north of the country, but those attacks claimed
by Boko Haram or the linked Islamist group Ansaru
are considered a different phenomenon, and not
necessarily motivated by a desire for ransom.
A number of people seized by Nigerian Islamists
have been killed by their captors, while others have
died during botched rescue operations.

http://m.news24.com/nigeria/National/News/Policeman-killed-as-gunmen-abduct-three-Chinese-in-Nigeria-20150314-3