Abducted Prospective Corps Members Regain Freedom in Imo, Parents Celebrate Release

The 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps members abducted in Imo State have regained their freedom seven days after gunmen seized them, bringing relief to their families who had endured days of anguish and uncertainty.

The Nigeria Police Force confirmed the rescue in a statement issued by Force Public Relations Officer CSP Ani Iniedu, saying the victims were freed on October 7, 2026, at Amakohia Ubi Village in Owerri West Local Government Area following sustained search-and-rescue operations.

“The Nigeria Police Force, in collaboration with sister security agencies, rescued the 20 prospective NYSC corps members abducted in Imo State on 1st October 2026,” the statement read.

The corps members were abducted on October 1 while travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom States. Gunmen attacked their two buses around Umunoha in Mbaitoli Local Government Area at about 6:30 a.m.

The rescue operation involved the military, the Department of State Security, the Nigeria Police and other sister security agencies.

The victims were subsequently taken to the DSS facility in Owerri for medical attention.

The NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, visited the victims at the facility. He was accompanied by the Imo State Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, the Director of the DSS in the state and the Commander of the 34 Artillery Brigade.

Alhaja Alimot Akande, spokesperson for the affected families, expressed mixed emotions over the release, saying parents were yet to establish direct contact with their children.

“We are happy that they have been released. This is what every parent has been waiting and praying for. For days, we have been living in fear and uncertainty because we did not know what could happen to our children,” Akande said.

She added that the families’ joy was not yet complete because they had not been able to speak with the victims directly.

“What we have heard is that they are still with the DSS. So, we are waiting for the authorities to allow us to have contact with them and, most importantly, to reunite them with their families,” she said.

Akande also revealed that individual parents made separate arrangements following ransom demands allegedly communicated by the abductors, and that no government provided financial assistance to the families.

“Each family had to find a way of dealing with its own situation. We were all desperate to see our children come back alive, and that was the priority for every parent,” she said.

The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, had earlier announced the release following a telephone conversation with Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma at about 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde also expressed relief over the development. The Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Prince Dotun Oyelade, said the state government was relieved at the release of the students.

The police said efforts were ongoing to apprehend those responsible for the abduction and bring all culpable persons to justice.