Kidnappers have reduced the ransom for the abducted prospective NYSC members to ₦100 million after their initial 24-hour ultimatum expired. The families of the victims say the captives are being beaten, including the female graduates, as security agencies work to mount a rescue operation.
Ransom Demand Slashed After Deadline Passes
The abductors initially demanded ₦50 million per captive, totaling ₦1 billion, and gave the families 24 hours to raise the money. After the deadline expired on Sunday, the kidnappers lowered their demand to ₦5 million per victim, bringing the total to ₦100 million. The reduction has done little to reassure the families, who say the captives are being physically abused.
Alimot Akande, whose sister 25-year-old Kehinde Marufat Akande is among those abducted, described the ordeal as “horrible, scary and overwhelming.” She said the kidnappers had started beating the victims and were using their contact with relatives to determine who could raise money. “They are not sparing anybody. They are beating all of them,” she said.
Parents Name Seven Abducted Graduates
Among the names released by the parents were Makinde Mary Oluwapelumi, Akande Kehinde Morufat, Abdul Temiloluwa Sarah, Adeniran Mariam Olulola, Adefioye Ayomide Isaac, Adewale Paul Iyanuoluwa and Oyede Esther Funmilayo. The families had gone to the private residence of the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, in Bodija, Ibadan North Local Government Area, on Saturday in search of help.
One of the abducted graduates has reportedly been allowed to speak to his father when the kidnappers see the father's number calling. Akande said the abductors appeared to believe the father would be able to provide the ransom. “They know money will come out of father’s hands, so they would just pick it and allow him to talk. And they have been beating him. They have been beating all of them,” she said.
Discrepancies in Rescue Reports
The parents also challenged earlier reports that 10 passengers had been rescued by security operatives. They said those who escaped during the attack fled into the bush rather than being rescued by security personnel. The account has added to the uncertainty surrounding the number of people initially taken. The Defence Headquarters had said 20 passengers were abducted, and 10 people, including eight prospective corps members, were subsequently rescued.
The abduction happened on October 1 when two buses carrying graduates from Ibadan to NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom were attacked around Umunoha on the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State. The families' account is that 30 people were travelling in the buses, 10 escaped into the bush and 20 were taken.
Security Forces Locate Hideout but Face IED Threat
Imo State Commissioner of Police Audu Garba Bosso said surveillance drones had located the suspected camp after operatives tracked the kidnappers into the bush. But he said an immediate assault was considered too risky because intelligence suggested the area had been planted with improvised explosive devices. The police are preparing bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers for the operation. “We are moving in with bulldozers and APCs to see how we’re going to rescue these victims unhurt,” Bosso said.
The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has also deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Nadada, alongside additional commissioners and tactical teams to reinforce the rescue effort. The Olubadan assured the anxious families that their children would be brought back unharmed, while the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, said he had been in contact with his Imo counterpart over the operation. “I want to assure you that your children would be rescued unharmed,” Ladoja told the parents. The families are now left facing a lower ransom and the fear that the young graduates are being physically abused while security agencies work to reach the camp.
