Abductors who seized 19 prospective NYSC members travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to their orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states have reportedly demanded N950m for their release.
The victims were travelling in two buses when gunmen attacked them along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State, on Thursday.
The Managing Director of Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited, Isiah Akpan, said the abductors demanded N50m for each victim.
According to him, the buses left Bodija/Samonda Park in Ibadan on Wednesday but were delayed by traffic around Benin before reaching Onitsha late in the day. The passengers spent the night in Oba and resumed their journey around 5am on Thursday.
Akpan said they had barely entered Imo State when gunmen emerged from the bush.
“They blocked the two vehicles and took 19 passengers, all corps members, into the bush,” he said.
The drivers reportedly escaped and alerted security personnel, prompting police and military operatives to launch a search.
Families of some victims also said the abductors contacted them using the victims’ phones and demanded N50m for each person.
One mother, Mrs Oladosu, said her daughter Greatness and other corps members were briefly shown to the family during a video call.
“They used my daughter’s number to call us. We saw her and other corps members sitting on the ground in the bush, crying,” she said.
The Imo State Police Command had earlier announced that 10 victims were rescued, while security agencies continued efforts to locate the remaining victims.
Meanwhile, the Oyo State Government condemned the abduction and said Governor Seyi Makinde had directed that necessary resources be deployed to secure their release.
“We are fully committed to securing the safe release of our children and will stop at nothing to ensure that they are reunited with their families without harm,” Commissioner for Information Dotun Oyelade said.
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