Kidnappers holding 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps members in Imo State have demanded a total ransom of N1 billion and given their families 24 hours to pay.
The victims were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to various NYSC orientation camps in the South-East and South-South when gunmen attacked two buses along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Mbaitoli Local Government Area, on Thursday.
The families said the abductors were demanding N50 million for each victim and had contacted them using the mobile phones of some of the kidnapped youths. They appealed for urgent intervention after meeting with the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, in Ibadan on Saturday.
Security agencies have continued efforts to locate and rescue the victims. Imo State police said drones had helped identify the suspected location where some of the abductees were being held, but the operation was delayed by reports of improvised explosive devices around the area.
The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, said he had been in contact with his Imo counterpart, who assured him that efforts were being made to rescue the victims unharmed.
The development has heightened concerns over the safety of prospective corps members travelling to orientation camps and renewed calls for stronger security along major inter-state routes.
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