Twenty prospective members of Nigeria’s National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) have been rescued after being abducted while travelling to their orientation camps in southeastern Nigeria.
The victims were among passengers travelling from Ibadan in Oyo State to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when they were abducted on October 1, 2026.
The group was travelling in two buses along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State when gunmen reportedly attacked the vehicles and took the prospective corps members away.
The incident prompted a coordinated search operation involving the Nigeria Police Force, military personnel, the Department of State Services (DSS) and other security agencies.
After several days of intelligence-led operations and searches of forests and suspected hideouts, the 20 victims were located and rescued at Amakohia Ubi in Imo State on Wednesday, October 7.
Police spokesperson Chief Superintendent Ani Iniedu confirmed that the victims were rescued following sustained search-and-rescue operations carried out with the assistance of other security agencies.
The rescued graduates were subsequently taken for medical assessment and necessary care. Reports indicate that they were receiving attention at a DSS facility in Owerri following their release.
The rescue came exactly a week after the prospective corps members were abducted.
The operation followed a difficult search for the victims. Security agencies had earlier identified the suspected location where the abductees were being held but reportedly could not immediately enter the area because of concerns over explosives.
Security personnel subsequently intensified their operations and deployed additional resources to locate and safely recover the victims.
The abduction had caused considerable concern among the families of the affected graduates. Reports during their captivity indicated that the abductors had demanded ransom from some of the victims’ families.
However, authorities have not confirmed that any ransom was paid in exchange for the victims’ release.
Imo State Commissioner of Police Audu Bosso said he was not aware of any ransom payment and attributed the release to pressure mounted by security agencies during the search operation.
Police had earlier reported that some victims escaped or were rescued during the initial attack, while efforts continued to locate the remaining prospective corps members.
The successful rescue has brought relief to the families and relatives of the young graduates, who had been waiting for information about their whereabouts since the October 1 attack.
The NYSC is a compulsory one-year national service programme for most Nigerian university graduates, with participants deployed to different parts of the country.
The incident has renewed concerns about the safety of young graduates travelling long distances to their assigned orientation camps, particularly amid continuing security challenges in parts of southeastern Nigeria.
Despite the successful rescue, the security operation is not yet over. The Nigeria Police Force says efforts are continuing to identify and apprehend those responsible for the abduction.
Authorities have also reaffirmed their commitment to working with other security agencies to address kidnapping and other threats along major roads.
For the 20 prospective corps members, however, the immediate priority is recovery and medical assessment following their week-long ordeal.
Source: Thepressradio.com
