The toddler kidnapped last Thursday in the Niger Delta by armed men from the car taking her to school was safely released Sunday.

The confirmation of the little girl’s release came late Sunday. Margaret Hill, 3, was freed unharmed and without an exchange for ransom.

Margaret is the daughter of expatriate oil worker Michael Hill and Nigerian national Oluchi Hill. She was snatched by gunmen on Thursday morning, as the car driving her to school waited in traffic in the oil city of Port Harcourt.

The men smashed a window in the car and stabbed Margaret’s driver when he tried to protect her.

The little girl’s mother, Oluchi Hill, told BBC that the kidnappers telephoned and demanded that Margaret’s father replace her. They also threatened to kill the toddler.

State government spokesperson Emmanuel Okah said Margaret had been released by her captors without demanding ransom. The little girl was unscathed, apart from mosquito bites.

Her father, Mike Hill, confirmed to British media that no ransom had been paid and added that his daughter was hungry and bitten by mosquitoes. He told Sky News: “She was released due to the pressure put on the people by the security services of Nigeria.”

Mr. Hill added he and his wife planned to take Margaret to the hospital Monday morning to check her. Mike Hill has been living in Nigeria for years.