Nigerian kidnappers collected nearly $5.8 million in ransom payments over the past year, according to a report released by security consultancy SBM Intelligence on Wednesday.

The report said 7,825 people were kidnapped between July 2025 and June 2026, representing a 66% increase compared to the previous year. At least 1,142 people were killed during the period.

SBM estimated that a faction of Boko Haram, known as Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati Wal‑Jihad, received about ₦7 billion in ransom payments, mainly from two mass abductions where more than 300 people were seized in each incident.

The consultancy said Boko Haram collected 90% of recorded ransom payments in the northeast, while more incidents and victims were reported in the northwest.

The report described kidnapping for ransom as a growing criminal industry that is crippling education and eroding public trust in government. Victims are often held for weeks or months until payments are made.

Gunmen target schools, villages, and major roads, with heavily armed bandits and Islamist militants among those responsible.

Government Response

The findings were released as President Bola Tinubu ordered security forces to rescue about 600 civilians kidnapped last week in Niger State.

Tinubu came to power three years ago pledging to tackle insecurity, but the report said the recent wave of kidnappings shows the policy has not delivered tangible progress.

The presidency and military did not immediately respond to requests for comment on SBM’s findings.

SBM cautioned that without a coordinated strategy targeting both the profitability of kidnapping and its root causes, Nigeria risks entrenching the crime as a funding mechanism for groups that threaten national stability.

“Without a coordinated strategy that targets both the profitability of the crime and its roots, Nigeria risks entrenching kidnapping not merely as a criminal industry but as a funding mechanism for the very groups that most threaten its stability,” the report stated.