Gunmen who abducted 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State, last Thursday have slashed their total ransom demand from ₦1 billion to ₦100 million.
The victims, who were traveling from Ibadan to their orientation camps in Akwa Ibom and Abia states, are now being held for ₦5 million each after the abductors dropped their initial demand of ₦50 million per person.
Despite the reduction in ransom, distraught family members report that the victims’ ordeal has worsened significantly.
Alhaja Alimot Akande, whose 25-year-old sister Kehinde is among those held, revealed that the captors have resorted to severe physical abuse.
She stated that the abductors began relentlessly beating all victims—male and female alike—and are monitoring telephone access strictly to exert emotional pressure on families to raise the cash while police advise relatives to buy time.
Frustrated families are also pointing fingers at the transport operator, Eduak King Transport Company, accusing the firm of failing to assist in the crisis.
Parents who visited the company’s Samonda terminal in Ibadan reported that management refused to release the passenger manifest and next-of-kin contacts that would allow affected families to unite.
Outraged relatives, including Mrs. Iyabo Akande and Olawale Olaleye, have called on the Inspector-General of Police to investigate the company and hold them accountable.
In response to the growing outrage, the Oyo State Government confirmed it is collaborating directly with Imo State authorities and security agencies to coordinate a rescue operation.
Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Dotun Oyelade, assured the public that government-to-government bilateral discussions are underway, drawing on strategies from recent abduction inquiries.
Oyelade urged the Federal Government and military leadership to account for national security measures taken over the past 72 hours to bring the youths home safely.
Meanwhile, the Imo State Police Command confirmed that search-and-rescue operations remain ongoing across the region.
Command spokesperson, Henry Okoye, disclosed that security forces swiftly recovered both abandoned vehicles at the scene and managed to rescue 10 passengers during the initial incident.
Okoye stated that tactical units and intelligence assets have been deployed to track the kidnappers into the surrounding terrain, though the exact total count of hostages is still undergoing official verification.
