The Imo State Police Command has confirmed the abduction of at least 20 National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members by gunmen along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State on Thursday, October 1, Nigeria’s 66th Independence Day.
The corps members were reportedly travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to various NYSC orientation camps when the gunmen intercepted the two vehicles conveying them at Umunoha Community in Imo State.
According to eyewitness accounts, the attackers reportedly seized the passengers and drivers of the two commercial buses, while other vehicles travelling along the route were also affected.
Videos circulating on social media showed concerned family members at Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Park in Samonda, Ibadan, where some of the victims reportedly boarded the buses before commencing their journey.
The vehicles were said to be conveying prospective corps members to orientation camps in different states, including Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Imo and Abia.
A survivor of the attack, who reportedly escaped, filmed an abandoned bus along the highway, claiming that occupants of a vehicle ahead of them, including the driver, had been taken away.
In another account, a mother said her daughter, who departed Ibadan on Thursday morning, sent the word “kidnapper” to their family WhatsApp group before becoming unreachable.
Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Imo State Command, Henry Okoye, said security operatives had intensified efforts to locate and rescue the abducted corps members.
Okoye disclosed that no arrest had been made in connection with the incident but assured that the Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, was committed to ensuring the safe and unharmed release of the victims.
“Efforts are ongoing to locate the victims and apprehend those responsible for the abduction,” he said.
The police said efforts were continuing to secure the release of the victims and bring those responsible for the attack to justice.
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