ABUJA, Nigeria – A new report by SBM Intelligence has exposed Nigeria’s deepening kidnapping crisis, revealing that criminals collected an estimated N2.56 billion (£1.4 million) in ransom payments between July 2024 and June 2025—a 144 per cent increase from the previous year.
The findings, released on Tuesday, showed that 4,722 people were abducted in 997 incidents during the period, while 762 deaths were linked to kidnapping-related violence.
Although kidnappers demanded N48 billion, only 5.35 per cent of this was actually paid. “Kidnapping has evolved into a predatory industry, draining communities and strengthening criminal enterprises,” the report warned.
The Northwest remained the epicentre, accounting for 62 per cent of abductions, with Zamfara State recording 1,203 victims. Kaduna and Katsina followed, with Katsina suffering the highest civilian death toll. Boko Haram was estimated to have channelled about one-third of ransom proceeds into its insurgency operations.
High-profile cases inflated ransom demands, such as the N30 billion demanded in Delta State for three family members, and the N766 million paid in Borno following the abduction of Justice Haruna Mshelia.
The devaluation of the naira worsened the crisis: while N2.56 billion equaled $1.66 million in 2025, N1.05 billion translated to $655,000 in 2024. “Kidnappers are recalibrating their demands to offset currency depreciation, forcing families to raise larger sums in local currency,” the report stated.
Communities, already strained, resorted to debt, asset sales, crowdfunding, or even offering food as part of ransom settlements. SBM warned that this “informal system of financial drainage is dismantling social safety nets, leaving vulnerable groups increasingly exposed.”
