Kidnappers Demand N950million Ransom for Abducted NYSC Prospective Corps Members

Families of prospective National Youth Service Corps members have been thrown into anxiety following the abduction of graduates travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to their NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states.

The victims were reportedly travelling in two buses operated by Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited when gunmen attacked the vehicles along the Owerri–Onitsha Road in Imo State on Thursday.

According to the bus company’s Managing Director, Isiah Akpan, the buses departed from Bodija/Samonda Park in Ibadan on Wednesday but encountered heavy traffic around Benin, Edo State, which delayed their journey.

The passengers later arrived in Onitsha, Anambra State, where they spent the night before resuming their journey at about 5 a.m. on Thursday.

Akpan said the vehicles had barely entered Imo State when armed men emerged from the bush, blocked the buses and abducted the passengers.

“They blocked the two vehicles and took 19 passengers, all corps members, into the bush,” he said.

However, the Defence Headquarters later stated that 20 people were abducted from the two buses, while 10 passengers were subsequently rescued.

The kidnappers have reportedly demanded ₦50 million for each abducted victim, putting the total ransom demand at about ₦950 million for 19 victims.

One parent told journalists that the abductors contacted her through her son’s phone and demanded ₦50 million for his release.

According to the distraught parent, the ransom demand was specifically for her son.

Another parent, Mrs Oladosu, said her daughter, Greatness, was among the graduates travelling to Uyo for the NYSC orientation programme.

She said the abductors contacted the family using her daughter’s phone and allowed them to see some of the victims during a video call.

“We saw her and other corps members sitting on the ground in the bush, crying,” she said.

Oladosu expressed concern over the huge ransom demand, particularly for families who may not have the financial capacity to raise such an amount.

The Imo State Police Command initially said it was working to establish the exact number of people abducted, while security agencies launched operations to locate the victims.

The Defence Headquarters subsequently confirmed that 10 passengers, including eight prospective corps members, had been rescued.

Security agencies are continuing efforts to locate and rescue the remaining victims.

The incident has renewed concerns over the safety of graduates travelling across states to attend NYSC orientation camps, with families awaiting further information on the whereabouts and condition of their loved ones.