28 August 2026 · Garun Mallam
Kidnapping in Kano
OpenWatch has recorded 151 reported kidnapping incidents in Kano State, 20 of them in the last 12 months. That is 18% of every incident recorded in the state, and ranks it 21 of 37 among the states where kidnapping is reported often enough to profile.
Incidents · 12 mo
20
Fatalities · 12 mo
5
Incidents · all-time
151
Fatalities · all-time
60
Latest reported kidnapping in Kano
22 August 2026 · Wudil
Bandits abduct Police Academy official en route Kebbi
27 July 2026 · Doguwa
Suspected bandits attacked a commercial bus on the Jos-Kano highway in Doguwa LGA, Kano State, and abducted three passengers who remain in captivity. The Kano State Police Command confirmed the incident in an official statement.
27 June 2026
A lawyer was abducted on his way from Kano to Sokoto after attending a Muslim Lawyers Association meeting and held for 21 days. His captors initially demanded N100 million ransom, later reduced to N10 million, and he was released after an unspecified ransom was paid by family and well-wishers.
10 June 2026 · Kiru
Armed assailants attempted to kidnap two children while rustling livestock in Kiru, Kano State. The NSCDC intervened, forcing the suspects to abandon the children and flee, while the injured shepherd was taken for medical assistance.
4 June 2026 · Kiru
An attempted kidnapping and cattle rustling incident was foiled by NSCDC operatives in Kano State, where armed assailants attacked a shepherd, injuring him and abducting his two children. The suspects fled after being confronted by security personnel.
21 May 2026
The Kano State Police arrested 248 suspects linked to various crimes, including armed robbery and kidnapping, and recovered numerous weapons. Recent violent clashes in the state resulted in the death of a police officer.
25 April 2026
Police in Kano State rescued a two-year-old child who had been kidnapped and arrested three suspects involved in the incident.
12 April 2026
Police in Kano State arrested 193 suspects and rescued 12 kidnapped victims during a crackdown on crime. The operation also led to the recovery of firearms and other criminal exhibits.
25 March 2026 · Kibiya
Operatives of the Department of State Services rescued a local government official from kidnappers in Kibiya Local Government Area, Kano State.
Other threats in Kano
About these figures
Counts cover incidents classified as kidnapping in Kano State, drawn from OpenWatch’s incident record, excluding retracted reports and duplicates merged into an earlier report. Figures update hourly. Last recorded: 28 August 2026.
Reported numbers are a floor, not a census. Incidents in remote areas are routinely under-reported, and classification follows how an event was described in reporting, so a low count is not a guarantee of safety. See the full Kano risk profile for every threat type, or the methodology for how incidents are collected and classified.
Track Kano live on the incident map.