Joint security forces have secured the release of 20 kidnapped prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and one civilian in Imo State. The victims are currently receiving medical attention at a Department of State Services (DSS) facility in Owerri.
The 20 graduates were abducted on Thursday, October 1, while travelling from Ibadan to their NYSC orientation camps. Gunmen attacked two buses conveying them along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State. The abductors initially demanded ₦50 million for each victim, totalling ₦1 billion, before reportedly reducing the ransom to ₦5 million per person.
The rescue operation was conducted by a joint team of operatives from the DSS, the Nigerian military, and the Nigeria Police Force. The Director-General of the NYSC, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, visited the DSS hospital to meet the rescued victims. He was accompanied by the Imo State Commissioner of Police, the Director of the DSS, and the Commander of the 34 Artillery Brigade.
Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma confirmed the release during a telephone conversation with the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja. Parents of the victims expressed relief but noted their joy was mixed with anxiety as they had not yet established direct contact with their children.