Eleven people, including members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), have been rescued after armed men abducted passengers along the Aloma-Egane Expressway in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
The victims were travelling from the NYSC orientation camp in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State when the assailants reportedly attacked two buses at about 4:40pm on Wednesday.
The Kogi State Police Command spokesperson, Afusat Saliu, disclosed this in a statement made available to TheCable on Friday.
According to Saliu, the attack occurred around Ogene Zaria, near the Ogene Zaria/Onicha-Igo Junction, when armed men emerged from the bush, blocked two buses travelling in opposite directions and abducted some of the passengers.
She said the police received a distress call and immediately mobilised a joint security team led by the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Ofu.
The team reportedly recovered two abandoned vehicles at the scene — a white Peace Mass Transit Hummer bus and a yellow 18-seater bus — before launching a coordinated bush-combing and rescue operation.
Saliu said the operation led to the rescue of 11 victims, including the drivers of the two buses.
“Preliminary debriefing revealed that most of the rescued victims were NYSC members travelling from Bayelsa State to Abuja,” she said.
She added that the rescued victims were debriefed and subsequently allowed to continue their journey after necessary procedures were completed.
The police did not disclose the exact number of people abducted during the attack, while efforts were ongoing to determine whether any NYSC members remained in captivity.
Saliu said the police and other security agencies had deployed “every available operational and intelligence resource” to rescue any remaining victims and arrest those responsible for the attack.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
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