Families of prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State have been thrown into panic after the kidnappers reportedly demanded N950 million for the release of 19 graduates.
The victims were among passengers travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom when gunmen attacked two buses around Umunoha, Mbaitoli Local Government Area, on Thursday.
The Managing Director of Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited, Isiah Akpan, confirmed the incident, saying the abductors demanded N50 million for each victim.
According to him, the two buses operated by his company had left Bodija/Samonda Park in Ibadan on Wednesday but were delayed by traffic around Benin, Edo State.
The vehicles later reached Onitsha, Anambra State, where the drivers and passengers reportedly spent the night before continuing their journey around 5am on Thursday.
Akpan said the buses had barely entered Imo State when armed men emerged from the bush, blocked the vehicles and took passengers into 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 at a nearby checkpoint, prompting security agencies to launch a search operation.
The police subsequently recovered the two buses and announced that 10 victims had been rescued. However, the Imo State Police Command initially said the exact number of people abducted was still being verified.
The police said the attack occurred at about 6:30am on October 1 and involved two buses conveying NYSC members and other passengers travelling from Ibadan to Uyo in Akwa Ibom State and Bende in Abia State. Security agencies have continued coordinated search-and-rescue operations for those still missing.
Parents, families in distress
The ransom demand has deepened the anxiety among relatives of the affected graduates.
A parent, who pleaded anonymity, said the abductors contacted her through her son’s phone and demanded N50 million for his release.
Another mother, Mrs Oladosu, whose daughter Greatness was travelling to Uyo, said the kidnappers briefly contacted the family through her daughter’s phone.
She said the family was able to see Greatness and other victims 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. Where will petty traders get N50m? They are just going to serve Nigeria; why this punishment?” she lamented.
Similarly, Mrs Alimotu Akanke, mother of another victim, Akande Farouq, said her son managed to send a one-word message—“Kidnappers!”—to the family WhatsApp group before his phone went dead.
A manifest from the two buses reportedly listed 30 passengers, while two other vehicles operated by the same company and travelling towards Abia escaped the attack.
Friends of some of the missing graduates have also taken to social media to appeal for help and draw attention to their plight.
One of the victims identified by friends is Precious Oladipupo, a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University.
Oyo govt reacts
The Oyo State Government has condemned the abduction and said it was working with security agencies, the Imo State Government and NYSC authorities to secure the safe return of the victims.
The state Commissioner for Information, Dotun Oyelade, said Governor Seyi Makinde had directed that necessary resources be deployed towards the rescue effort.
The government also appealed to the affected families to remain calm while security agencies intensify efforts to locate and rescue the abducted graduates.
Security operation intensified
The development has attracted renewed security attention, with the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, deploying the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Umar Nadada, to Imo to provide operational direction for the rescue mission.
Security agencies are combining tactical operations and intelligence-led tracking in the search for the remaining victims and the suspected abductors.
The incident has also renewed concerns about the safety of prospective corps members travelling across the country for orientation camps.
It comes weeks after another group of prospective corps members was abducted along the Aloma-Egane Expressway in Kogi State before security forces rescued them.
Security experts have consequently called for stronger protection for corps members travelling through known kidnapping corridors, with some advocating a review of deployment arrangements to reduce exposure to high-risk routes.
The latest incident has heightened anxiety among parents and graduates preparing for NYSC mobilisation, with growing calls for stronger security arrangements for young Nigerians travelling to orientation camps.
