Gunmen have kidnapped three Chinese workers in central Nigeria, the latest such incident in the region, police said Saturday.

“Three Chinese nationals were abducted by some unknown gunmen within the early hours of Friday,” a senior police officer, who did not want to be named, told AFP.

He said the gunmen stormed a quarry outside Lokoja, the capital of Kogi state, and engaged the policemen on guard in a shootout.

“One policeman was killed while another sustained gunshot wounds,” he said.

He said the assailants escaped with their hostages on foot through the bush, adding that police were on their trail.

Kogi state in central Nigeria has seen a wave of abductions targeting foreigners in recent months.

It was not immediately clear if the motive was ransom-taking.

Two weeks ago, two Chinese citizens were kidnapped in the state, while an American missionary was taken from her school last month.

The seizure of the American woman took place in village of Emiworo where the missionary from the Free Methodist Church ran a community organisation within the premises of a school linked to her church.

She was released last week.