Twenty prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and one other person abducted along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State have regained their freedom.
The victims were rescued from the Amakohia-Ubi forest in Owerri West Local Government Area of the state following a coordinated operation involving security agencies.
They have since been taken to the Department of State Services (DSS) Hospital in Owerri, where they are receiving medical attention and undergoing necessary medical checks.
The NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, visited the DSS clinic in Owerri to address 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.
The prospective corps members were abducted on October 1 while travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states. The two buses conveying them came under attack around Umunoha in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State.
The abduction had prompted a coordinated search-and-rescue operation by security agencies. Police had earlier reported locating the kidnappers’ camp through drone surveillance but said the area was reportedly mined with improvised explosive devices, delaying access to the victims.
Details of the rescue operation, including whether any arrests were made or ransom was paid, have not been made public. Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma has, however, commended the security agencies and the governments of Imo and Oyo states for their collaborative efforts in securing the victims’ release.
