HUGE RANSOM SOUGHT BY BOKO HARAM FOR KIDNAPPED US MISSIONARY IN NIGERIA

ABUJA - Masked gunmen in central Nigeria kidnapped an American woman Christian missionary and have demanded 60 million Naira or nearly $300,000, ransom from the Hope Academy.

Rev. Phyllis Sortor was abducted from the Hope Academy compound around 10 am on Monday in Kogi State.

The Free Methodist Church confirmed the attack.

"Early this morning we received a report that Rev. Phyllis Sortor, our missionary in Nigeria, was abducted from the Hope Academy compound in Emiworo, Kogi State, Nigeria by several persons," the church said.

The Kogi State police confirmed the kidnapping and said five gunmen, two of them wearing masks, scaled the fence bordering the missionary's compound, fired sporadically and made off with her.

Apart from running an NGO, Sortor is said to have secured a grazing land specifically for herdsmen in a move aimed at discouraging clashes between herdsmen and farmers.

Kogi state police spokesman Sola Collins Adebayo said Phyllis Sortor "was whisked away at around 10:00am Monday (local time)."

He said the attack took place in the Emiworo village where the missionary from the Free Methodist Church ran a community organisation within the premises of a school linked to her church.

The kidnappers were "unknown gunmen...(who) came into the school premises shooting sporadically to scare away people before taking (the hostage) away into the bush," Adebayo said

"We will do all within the available resources to ensure the safe rescue of the victim," he said, adding that officials are combing the forest for her.

A statement on the Free Methodist Church's website contained similar details.

"The US Embassy has been notified, and the State Department and the FBI are working with local authorities to find and rescue her," the statement attributed to Bishop David Kendall said.

"We are calling on the US church to join together in prayer for Phyllis' safety and speedy release," he added.

State Department officials declined to provide information about the kidnapping.

Foreign nationals have often been kidnapped in Nigeria by local gangs who typically release hostages following a ransom payment.

Boko Haram has been blamed for previous attacks in Kogi, including two raids targeting the same prison in 2012 and 2014.

But there was no indication Boko Haram were responsible for the missionary's abduction.