The Department of State Services (DSS), military and police operatives have arrested five suspected members of a criminal gang allegedly responsible for the abduction of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members in Imo State on October 1.
Three other suspects reportedly escaped during the intelligence-led operations with varying degrees of gunshot injuries, according to security sources.
The arrests were made during a series of coordinated operations conducted between October 10 and 14 in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and Aba South Local Government Area of Abia State.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the prospective corps members were travelling to their assigned orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when gunmen intercepted their vehicles along the Owerri-Onitsha Expressway on Nigeria’s 66th Independence Day.
The victims were held captive for several days before they were rescued on October 7 during a joint security operation at Amakohia Ubi village in Imo State.
Security agencies have since sustained efforts to identify and apprehend those allegedly involved in the abduction, with the latest arrests expected to assist investigations into the criminal network.
A security source described the arrests as a major development in the effort to bring the suspected kidnappers to justice.
“This is a huge sigh of relief. Security agencies have been on a manhunt for the abductors, and we are elated that they have been captured. We strongly believe they will be charged to Court by DSS and the corps members will get justice,” the source said.
The source added that the operations were part of continuing efforts by security agencies to track down the remaining suspects and dismantle the network allegedly responsible for the crime.
Recall that the 20 prospective corps members were seized while travelling in two 18-seater buses from Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, towards the South-East.
Following the incident, the kidnappers reportedly demanded an initial ransom of N1 billion from the victims’ families before the amount was reduced to N5 million per person, bringing the total demand to N100 million.
The families subsequently faced the challenge of raising funds to secure the release of their relatives, who remained in captivity for seven days.
The victims were eventually rescued in an operation involving the police, DSS and military personnel. However, questions later emerged over whether a ransom had been paid before their release.
Parents of some of the abducted prospective corps members subsequently disclosed that money contributed by families and representatives to secure the victims’ freedom had been returned.
Obasanjo and Alirat Wahab, parents of one of the victims, said the money collected from the families had been refunded, although they could not confirm whether the ransom had been delivered to the kidnappers or identify those responsible for returning the funds.
Alirat Wahab had earlier told News Central that her family paid N6 million in efforts to secure her son’s release.
However, her husband, Obasanjo, later said he could not establish whether the representatives sent by the families had successfully delivered the money to the kidnappers.
“They went to look for the kidnapped corps members to see whether they would be freed or not,” he said, explaining the role played by the representatives.
He added that the kidnappers had asked the families’ representatives to bring the ransom before the situation changed and the victims were released.
“The kidnappers had asked for representatives to bring the ransom. Since they could no longer hold the corps members hostage, they let them go,” he said.
Obasanjo did not provide further details about the circumstances surrounding the ransom negotiations or explain who facilitated the refunds.
He instead urged the public to appreciate the intervention of the Imo State Government and move on from the incident.
“You know what, let’s forget the matter and just appeal to the Imo State Government. We should be grateful to them,” he said.
“The money has been returned. We just want to thank Imo for a job well done.”
