Kidnappers who abducted 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members travelling from Oyo State to their orientation camps have given their parents 24 hours to pay a total ransom of N1 billion, threatening to harm the victims if the deadline is missed. The abductors reportedly demanded N50 million for each of the 20 graduates, who were seized on Thursday when gunmen attacked two buses conveying them from Ibadan to their respective camps along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State.
The affected parents disclosed the demand on Saturday during a visit to the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, at his private residence in Bodija, Ibadan. They were accompanied by the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, and the Aseyin of Iseyinland, Oba Sefiu Adeyeri.
Speaking for the families, Alhaja Akande and Oyebola Akande said the kidnappers had been calling them since Friday using the mobile phones of the abducted graduates, warning that anything could happen to the victims if the money was not paid. “There is no way we can raise such an amount at this period,” the parents said, pleading with the Olubadan not to let their children be killed. They urged the monarch and the police commissioner to intervene urgently to secure the safe and immediate release of the victims.
Responding, Ladoja assured the families that the children would be rescued unharmed, promising to share any information gathered with them. He said the police were working round the clock and urged the parents to remain calm. Abimbola said he had been in touch with his Imo State counterpart, Audu Garba Bosso, since the day of the incident, and that Bosso had assured him the victims would be rescued unhurt. The Oyo commissioner did not say whether any ransom had been paid by the families, nor did he give specifics of the rescue operation.
Meanwhile, the Imo State Police Command said operatives had identified the suspected kidnappers’ hideout. Bosso said on Saturday that security personnel used drones to locate the camp where the remaining victims are believed to be held. He added, however, that the rescue operation had been delayed by intelligence reports that the camp had been planted with improvised explosive devices (IEDs), raising fears for the safety of both the hostages and the operatives.
The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has deployed the Deputy Inspector-General in charge of Operations, Shehu Nadada, to Imo State to coordinate the search-and-rescue effort. The abduction has renewed concerns about the safety of travellers on major highways in the South-East, particularly as the graduates were on their way to begin the mandatory one-year national service.
With the kidnappers’ reported deadline looming, the parents continue to appeal for urgent government and security intervention to secure the safe return of their children.
