Twenty prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and another passenger abducted along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State have regained their freedom.
The victims were released on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, six days after they were taken into captivity, and have been admitted to the Department of State Services (DSS) Hospital in Owerri for medical attention.
The victims were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when gunmen intercepted two buses near Umunoha in Mbaitoli Local Government Area at about 6:30 a.m. on October 1.
The attack prompted a coordinated search-and-rescue operation by the police and other security agencies. Ten victims were rescued shortly after the attack, while efforts continued to locate those still being held.
The operation was later strengthened by the deployment of Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Umar Nadada, and two Commissioners of Police by Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu.
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Security operatives subsequently tracked the abductors to a bush location with the aid of intelligence gathering and drone surveillance.
However, an immediate assault was ruled out after intelligence indicated that the suspected hideout had been planted with improvised explosive devices.
The security teams sustained efforts to secure the victims’ safe recovery, leading to the release of the remaining 20 prospective corps members and the other passenger on October 7.
The circumstances surrounding the final release have not been publicly detailed, and authorities have not confirmed any arrest in connection with the abduction.
The incident comes weeks after security forces rescued 15 corps members and six other abductees from Egume Forest in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State on August 31.
The Kogi victims had been abducted while travelling from Bayelsa State to Abuja and were recovered during a coordinated security operation.
The latest rescue brings relief to the affected families and ends the six-day ordeal of the abducted prospective corps members.