Kabul , Afghanistan ( CNN ) -- Afghan authorities have recovered the bodies of five police officers and three intelligence agents just days after they were kidnapped by insurgents in the country 's volatile Wardak province , officials said Sunday . The men had been driving through a mountainous district outside the provincial capital of Maidan Shar on Thursday when gunmen stopped their vehicle and took them hostage , according to Shahidullah Shahid , a provincial governor 's spokesman . The Taliban have since claimed responsibility for the killing , according to the group 's spokesman . Wardak has long been considered a hotbed of insurgent activity and is the province where militants reportedly shot down a NATO Chinook helicopter last week that killed 38 people , including 30 Americans .
The men were kidnapped Thursday and killed . The Taliban take responsibility for the killing . Wardak has long been considered a hotbed of insurgent activity .