*We Paid Millions For Their Release, Parents Allege
*Police: We’re Not Aware, Say Police
THE 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members who regained their freedom after one week in captivity in Imo State have been reunited with their families in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, after over three hours of engagement with the Department of State Services (DSS) officials.
The victims and some parents were earlier given access to the DSS office in Owerri, while others stayed outside.
They were among the 30 prospective corps members kidnapped while travelling along the Owerri-Onitsha road in Umunoha, Imo State, from Oyo State to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states, after the remaining 10 escaped through the bush.
One of the parents, Faith Felicia Abiala, described her daughter’s safe return as a moment of relief, urging the Federal Government to provide stronger security arrangements for corps members travelling to their states of deployment or allow them to travel by air to avoid such dangerous road journeys.
“I cannot recount all the tears and sorrow, but I give thanks to God that I am seeing her alive today.
“On the day she was taken, I was so devastated I couldn’t even eat, but today my heart is filled with joy.
“I thank God, and I thank the DSS officials, they really tried. The team from Oyo State and the team from Imo State, they really tried and stood by us until our children came out safe and sound,” she told Punch.
One of the victims burst into tears on sighting her parents, simply saying “it was a horrible experience.”
Alimot Akande, one of the victims’ mothers, described their release: “It is good news! Good news! Good news,” adding that the confirmation of their release enabled their families to sleep peacefully after days of anguish.
The abductors initially demanded N50million for each victim, amounting to N1billionn, but later reduced the ransom to N5million per person, N100million in total.
In a brewing controversy, while the parents insisted they paid millions of naira in ransom to secure the release of their loved ones, with some relatives paying between N3million and N6million, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), which claimed security agencies rescued the victims on Wednesday, October 7, said no ransom was paid for their freedom.
Imo State Commissioner of Police (CP), Audu Bosso, rather said the kidnappers succumbed to pressure from security agencies, who combed the forest during a rescue operation, adding he was not aware that any ransom had been paid.
Bosso the Police, in collaboration with the Nigerian Army, Navy, Air Force, DSS and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), responded to the distress call and launched an operation to locate the victims.
He stated: “We galvanised our resources and went into the bush. We did not relent in our efforts and tried as much as possible to make sure that all the crannies within the bush were combed.
“Locations where we had intelligence, especially the Amako community area where the intelligence came from, were combed.
“At the end of the day, because of the pressure we gave the hoodlums, they eventually released the prospective corps members, and we got them rescued.
“We’ve fortified access, not only the access where this incident happened, but also across the entire state where we feel it’s a flashpoint. It has been attended by deployments of more security personnel to make sure that such an incident or any other criminal activity does not take place.
“To my knowledge, no ransom was paid. I am not aware whether a ransom was paid, but we did what we were supposed to do as professionals, and that’s how we got them.
One of the mothers explained:“I paid as much as N3million as ransom, while I was hoping that nothing happened to my child. I ran helter-skelter to raise the money.
“I eventually got the money and sent someone to deliver the ransom directly to them.”
Recall that the affected family had converged on Ibadan to raise the ransom, and father of another of the victims said his family had to form an emergency alliance to raise N6million:
“We had to converge somewhere in Ibadan, Oyo State, to put the money together. Some of us even changed the money to dollars and sent it to Imo State to meet whoever was coming to pick it.
“I am excited that my son is coming back. However, how do I repay the N6million I borrowed? I’m just a farmer.”
Another mother, speaking on television in Yoruba, said: “Initially, they asked us to pay N50million per head. We asked whether the amount was for all of them, but they insisted that no, it was for each person. Later, we started begging them to take N500, 000. But they said no and started scaring us.
“Three days ago, they called and said we should pay N15million. We kept begging them that all we had was N5.5million. They said no and insisted on N6million. So, it’s that N6million we paid.
“They called all the parents of all the victims, 20 of them are in the bush. They then asked us to send three persons each to meet with them in Ibadan.
“My husband and my son’s elder brother went. When they got to the meeting place, they asked them to send the money to an account, and that when they get to Imo State, they should change the money into dollars.
“This is not a rumour. They have all been released and sent to us. His brother is among the people who went to meet with the abductors three days ago. They left with the ransom.”
She recounted: “Since he was kidnapped, I have been stooling. I couldn’t sleep either. But I was relieved when I heard they had been released. It was as though the chains all over me were loosened.”
But Force Public Relations Officer, Ani Iniedu (CSP), insisted the victims were rescued at Amakohia Ubi Village in Imo State, following sustained search-and-rescue operations.
Iniedu, in a statement, said: “The Nigeria Police Force, in collaboration with sister security agencies, has rescued the 20 prospective NYSC corps members abducted in Imo State on 1st October 2026.
“The victims were rescued on 7th October 2026 at Amakohia Ubi Village, Imo State, following sustained search-and-rescue operations. They have since been taken for medical assessment and necessary care.”
The statement added that coordinated operations were ongoing to track down and prosecute masterminds, commending the public for their cooperation and support during the rescue operation.
In a back and forth counter-claim, another parent told BBC News Yoruba that the kidnappers collected the ransom in dollars, saying security agencies were not responsible for the release.
“Not a single person was responsible for securing the release of our children. The parents, alongside friends and support from people online, contributed money so that each parent could pay the amount demanded by the kidnappers.
“The DSS was involved in rescue efforts and had invited parents to assist with investigations. The DSS was fully aware that we had converted money into U.S. dollars through a local currency exchanger before delivering it to the kidnappers. It was a huge amount of money. The money was substantial.”
One parent said her child would pull out of the scheme entirely if forced to remain in her original posting, vowing to only allow her child to continue the service year if redeployed to safer regions, such as Oyo or Ogun states.
The rescued 20 prospective corps members arrived in Ibadan on Thursday, October 8 and were taken to the DSS office in the Aleshinloye area for debriefing.
Following the release, Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, lauded security agencies for their intervention, collaboration and patriotism, which he said ensured the safe release of the victims.
Uzodimma commended the Imo and Oyo states governments for working together to secure the release of the prospective corps members, saying the authorities deliberately limited information in the public domain while efforts were underway to free the victims, given that the incident involved the safety of human lives.
The governor also commended the parents for their patience during the ordeal, even as he urged Nigerians to continue to have faith in the Federal Government as it works to address the country’s security challenges.
On its part, the Oyo State Government expressed relief over the release, describing their freedom as a welcome development.
(With online reports)
