Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis remained heavily concentrated in the northern part of the country, with Zamfara, Sokoto and Borno recording the highest numbers of victims between July 2025 and June 2026, according to a report obtained from SBM Intelligence’s website on Friday.

The research firm recorded 7,825 kidnapping victims across 1,411 incidents during the period, with the North accounting for 93.7 per cent of all victims.

The figures are contained in SBM Intelligence’s August 2026 report, The Capture of Nigeria’s Kidnap Economy, which examined kidnapping incidents, victims, civilian and security casualties, ransom payments and anti-kidnap operations across the country.

According to the report, the data was compiled through desk research and one-on-one interviews, using publicly available information from government agencies, regulators, newspapers, trade associations and research partners. The data was subsequently fact-checked and edited before publication.

1. Benue — 145 victims

Benue recorded 145 kidnapping victims across 32 incidents during the period.

The state recorded 26 anti-kidnap operations, the highest number among the states listed.

It also recorded 15 civilian deaths and three kidnappers killed, with no security-agent deaths reported.

1. Kebbi — 216 victims

Kebbi recorded 216 kidnapping victims across 52 incidents.

The state recorded five anti-kidnap operations, while 33 civilians, one kidnapper and three security agents were killed.

Kebbi also recorded a resurgence in school abductions during the period.

1. Kwara — 265 victims

Kwara recorded 265 kidnapping victims across 89 incidents.

Five anti-kidnap operations were recorded in the state, while 50 civilians and four kidnappers were killed. Thirteen security agents also died.

Despite ranking eighth by number of victims, Kwara recorded the highest ransom demand among the states, at N7.375bn.

The report linked a significant portion of the demand to Boko Haram activity around Woro and Wawa.

1. Kogi — 412 victims

Kogi recorded 412 kidnapping victims across 85 incidents.

Security forces conducted 21 anti-kidnap operations in the state, while 20 civilians were killed.

The state also recorded 13 kidnappers killed and one security agent death.

1. Niger — 496 victims

Niger State recorded 496 kidnapping victims across 68 incidents.

The state recorded six anti-kidnap operations and 54 civilian deaths. No kidnappers or security agents were recorded as killed.

Niger also accounted for N2bn in ransom payments, largely linked to the abduction of 315 pupils and staff of St Mary’s School in Papiri.

1. Katsina — 559 victims

Katsina recorded 559 kidnapping victims across 187 incidents, making it the state with the second-highest number of incidents after Zamfara.

The state recorded 25 anti-kidnap operations, second only to Benue’s 26.

It also recorded 101 civilian deaths, one kidnapper killed, and six security agents killed.

1. Kaduna — 814 victims

Kaduna recorded 814 kidnapping victims across 134 incidents.

The state carried out 24 anti-kidnap operations, while 130 civilians were killed.

Security forces also killed 74 kidnappers, the highest figure among the states listed.

No security-agent deaths were recorded in Kaduna.

1. Borno — 892 victims

Borno recorded 892 kidnapping victims across 55 incidents, placing it third among the states.

The state recorded 20 anti-kidnap operations, while 24 civilians and 13 security agents were killed. No kidnapper deaths were recorded.

Borno also recorded the country’s largest ransom payment during the period following the abduction of 416 people in Ngoshe, for which N5bn was reportedly paid.

1. Sokoto — 1,157 victims

Sokoto recorded the second-highest number of kidnapping victims, with 1,157 people abducted across 179 incidents.

Security forces carried out 19 anti-kidnap operations in the state.

The period also recorded 166 civilian deaths, no reported kidnapper deaths and four security-agent deaths.

Sokoto recorded 76 mass-abduction incidents involving 974 victims.

1. Zamfara — 1,921 victims

Zamfara recorded the highest number of kidnapping victims in Nigeria, with 1,921 people abducted across 236 incidents.

The state recorded only four anti-kidnap operations during the period.

It also recorded 211 civilian deaths, three kidnappers killed and 10 security agents killed.

Zamfara’s 1,921 victims accounted for almost a quarter of all kidnapping victims recorded nationally.

Northwest remains epicentre

The report showed that Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis remained concentrated in the North, with the three northern geopolitical zones accounting for 7,334 of the 7,825 victims recorded during the period.

The Northwest recorded the highest number, with 4,771 victims, followed by the Northeast with 1,497 and the North-Central with 1,066.

The Northwest also recorded the highest number of kidnapping incidents, with 680, compared with 309 in the North-Central and 211 in the Northeast.

In the South, the South-South recorded 192 victims, while the Southwest recorded 236 and the Southeast 63.

Overall, the North accounted for 93.7 per cent of all kidnapping victims, compared with 6.3 per cent in southern Nigeria.

SBM Intelligence attributed the disparity partly to the scale of armed groups operating across the North and the region’s large rural landmass, including forests and other difficult-to-police areas where abductors can operate and hold victims.

The Northwest also dominated mass abductions, recording 267 of the country’s 396 mass-kidnapping incidents, representing 67.4 per cent of the national total.

Across Nigeria, mass abductions accounted for 6,222 victims, representing 79.5 per cent of all people kidnapped during the period.