Imo police confirm kidnapping of NYSC members traveling from Ibadan

The Imo State Police have confirmed that some National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and other passengers were kidnapped. This happened when gunmen attacked two buses traveling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to orientation camps in the South-east and South-south regions.

This attack took place around 6:30 a.m. on Thursday along the Owerri-Onitsha Road near Umunoha in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State. The police shared this information in a statement from their Public Relations Officer, Okoye Henry.

The two buses were on their way to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, and Bende, Abia State. The police said 10 victims were rescued at the scene thanks to quick action by the police and other security agencies. They are still checking how many people are still missing.

“The rescued victims are in safe hands and are being attended to. The exact number of persons abducted is being verified and will be made public once confirmed,” the statement said.

Mr Henry assured the public that the police would keep working until all victims are safely found and the kidnappers are caught. The police are also in touch with NYSC officials to notify the families of the affected corps members.

“Operatives are conducting coordinated search and rescue operations, backed by intelligence-led tracking of the suspects. The Commissioner of Police, alongside other Service Commanders, visited the scene for an on-the-spot assessment and to give operational direction. He assured the public that the Command will sustain the operation until all victims are safely recovered and the suspects are brought to justice.”

Families of the missing corps members are now in a panic trying to find out where their loved ones are. Some relatives are calling on security agencies and the federal government to step up efforts to rescue their family members.

One parent, whose daughter was traveling to an orientation camp in Abia State, shared her story in a video. She said she received a distress message from her daughter early Thursday morning.

The parent explained that her daughter was sharing her live location with the family through a WhatsApp group while traveling from Ibadan. Suddenly, around 6:00 a.m., the daughter sent the word “kidnapper” to the group. This made relatives call her immediately.

The calls went through at first, but she did not pick up before her phone became unreachable. The parent said, “She quickly typed ‘kidnapper’, and we tried to call immediately to see what happened. Since then, she has been offline.”

Later, family members found out that the bus passengers and the driver were taken away, while some passengers on another bus managed to escape. This incident in Imo has raised new worries about the safety of corps members traveling long distances to their camps.

This attack comes just weeks after another highway attack in Kogi State, where corps members were abducted. PREMIUM TIMES reported that this earlier incident happened on 26 August near Ogene Zaria, along the Ogene Zaria-Onicha-Igo junction on the Aloma-Egane Expressway. The police later said that 11 people, including corps members, were rescued in a joint security operation.