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Twenty prospective National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, members and one civilian abducted in Imo State have been rescued in an intelligence-led operation involving the military, Department of State Services, DSS, police and other security agencies.
The victims were abducted on Thursday, October 1, 2026, while travelling through the state, prompting security agencies to launch a joint operation to locate and rescue them.
The rescued victims are currently receiving medical attention at a DSS facility in Owerri, according to security sources, while efforts are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding the abduction and apprehend remaining suspects.
According to credible reports, the victims were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to different NYSC orientation camps in the South-East and South-South when two buses conveying them were intercepted around 6:30 a.m. around the Umunoha area of Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, along the Owerri-Onitsha Road.
The buses were reportedly heading to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State and Bende, Abia State. The Imo State Police Command had earlier confirmed that NYSC members were among passengers taken into the bush by gunmen and announced the recovery of the two buses and the rescue of 10 victims shortly after the attack, while search continued for the rest.
Following the abduction, tactical teams and operational assets were deployed across identified areas. The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, DIG Shehu Nadada, to Imo State to coordinate the search-and-rescue operation.
DIG Nadada arrived in the state with two Commissioners of Police, including the Commissioner of Police, Federal Operations, CP Akpan Anifiok, and conducted on-the-spot assessment alongside Imo State Commissioner of Police, CP Audu Garba Bosso. The operation was supported by intelligence-led tracking and coordinated efforts with sister security agencies.
Security agencies later intensified intelligence gathering and surveillance around the suspected hideout of the abductors, in an operation involving personnel from the Nigerian Army, Police, DSS and other agencies working together.
Security sources said an immediate assault on the hideout was delayed by intelligence indicating presence of improvised explosive devices around the area.
The victims have been taken to the Department of State Services Hospital in Owerri, where they are currently receiving medical attention. The Director-General of the NYSC, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, is presently at the DSS Clinic in Owerri addressing the rescued victims in company of the Imo State Commissioner of Police, Director DSS and Brigade Commander, 34 Artillery Brigade.
Police authorities assured that the Nigeria Police Force is committed to securing the safe rescue of the abducted persons and will sustain the operation until successfully concluded.
The abduction, which had generated anxiety among families after reports that abductors contacted some families to demand ransom, has raised fresh concerns about safety of graduates travelling to orientation camps.
Further details on the condition of the victims and ongoing investigation to apprehend the suspects are expected to emerge.
Military, DSS, Police Rescue 21 From Kidnappers In Imo — 20 Prospective Corps Members Freed
Twenty prospective National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, members and one civilian abducted in Imo State have been rescued in an intelligence-led operation involving the military, Department of State Services, DSS, police and other security agencies.
The victims were abducted on Thursday, October 1, 2026, while travelling through the state, prompting security agencies to launch a joint operation to locate and rescue them.
The rescued victims are currently receiving medical attention at a DSS facility in Owerri, according to security sources, while efforts are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding the abduction and apprehend remaining suspects.
According to credible reports, the victims were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to different NYSC orientation camps in the South-East and South-South when two buses conveying them were intercepted around 6:30 a.m. around the Umunoha area of Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, along the Owerri-Onitsha Road.
The buses were reportedly heading to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State and Bende, Abia State. The Imo State Police Command had earlier confirmed that NYSC members were among passengers taken into the bush by gunmen and announced the recovery of the two buses and the rescue of 10 victims shortly after the attack, while search continued for the rest.
Following the abduction, tactical teams and operational assets were deployed across identified areas. The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, DIG Shehu Nadada, to Imo State to coordinate the search-and-rescue operation.
DIG Nadada arrived in the state with two Commissioners of Police, including the Commissioner of Police, Federal Operations, CP Akpan Anifiok, and conducted on-the-spot assessment alongside Imo State Commissioner of Police, CP Audu Garba Bosso. The operation was supported by intelligence-led tracking and coordinated efforts with sister security agencies.
Security agencies later intensified intelligence gathering and surveillance around the suspected hideout of the abductors, in an operation involving personnel from the Nigerian Army, Police, DSS and other agencies working together.
Security sources said an immediate assault on the hideout was delayed by intelligence indicating presence of improvised explosive devices around the area.
The victims have been taken to the Department of State Services Hospital in Owerri, where they are currently receiving medical attention. The Director-General of the NYSC, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, is presently at the DSS Clinic in Owerri addressing the rescued victims in company of the Imo State Commissioner of Police, Director DSS and Brigade Commander, 34 Artillery Brigade.
Police authorities assured that the Nigeria Police Force is committed to securing the safe rescue of the abducted persons and will sustain the operation until successfully concluded.
The abduction, which had generated anxiety among families after reports that abductors contacted some families to demand ransom, has raised fresh concerns about safety of graduates travelling to orientation camps.
Further details on the condition of the victims and ongoing investigation to apprehend the suspects are expected to emerge.
This post has already been read at least 1152 times!
