A chilling video circulating on social media has revealed that suspected Boko Haram/ISWAP insurgents are holding two men captive in Borno State and demanding a hefty $300,000 ransom—roughly ₦423 million—for their freedom.
The abductees, one of whom has been identified as Hon. Hassan Biu Miringa, a former Vice Chairman of Biu Local Government Area who served from 2020 to 2022, appear visibly distressed as they plead for urgent help from authorities and community leaders.
The second captive's identity has not been publicly confirmed.According to the footage, first reported by security intelligence platform Zagazola Makama, the two men were kidnapped on December 17, 2025, while traveling from Miringa to Maiduguri, the state capital. Speaking directly to the camera, they confirm they are still alive and describe their captors as members of the "Khilafa group," demanding $150,000 per person."We were abducted on our way from Miringa to Maiduguri around 2:30 p.m. Alhamdulillah, we are alive," one of the victims says in the video.
"They said we must provide $150,000 each. For the two of us, it is $300,000. We want to be reunited with our families."The captives make an emotional appeal to several prominent figures, including Borno State Deputy Governor Umar Usman Kadafur, Hon. Mukhtar Betara Aliyu (member representing Biu/Bayo/Shani in the House of Representatives), Hon. Sule Ali Rimi, Hon. Yakubu Gambo Kimba (members of the Borno State House of Assembly), and Alhaji Musa Dogo Biu (APC secretary in Biu), urging them to intervene and secure their release.
This latest incident underscores the persistent threat of ransom kidnappings in Borno, where Boko Haram and its splinter faction, ISWAP, continue to target travelers along highways and rural routes despite sustained military operations aimed at degrading the groups' capabilities.
No official response has yet come from security agencies or the Borno State Government regarding the video or the ransom demand, leaving families and communities in growing anxiety as the captives await rescue or negotiation.
The development highlights the ongoing security challenges in the northeast, where abductions for ransom remain a grim tactic for funding insurgent activities amid the protracted conflict.
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