Parents of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted in Imo State have appealed for urgent intervention after their children’s alleged abductors demanded a total ransom of ₦1 billion and reportedly gave the families 24 hours to pay.
The parents made the disclosure on Saturday when they visited the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, at his residence in Bodija, Ibadan, seeking help to secure the safe release of their children.
The prospective corps members, who were travelling from Ibadan to their respective NYSC orientation camps, were reportedly abducted after gunmen attacked two buses along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State, on Thursday.
According to the affected families, the kidnappers have been contacting them through the mobile phones of some of the abducted prospective corps members and demanding ₦50 million for each victim.
With 20 victims, the reported demand amounts to ₦1 billion.
The parents said the abductors threatened that something untoward could happen to their children if the money was not paid within the stipulated 24-hour period.
“We have been calling us since yesterday (Friday) with a demand for N50m ransom each. They are threatening that anything untoward will happen to our children if we fail to heed to their request,” the parents said, according to reports.
They appealed to Oba Ladoja, the government and security agencies to intervene, stressing that the families could not raise such an amount within the short period given by the abductors.
Responding, Oba Ladoja assured the families that efforts were being made to secure the safe return of the victims.
The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, also said he had been in contact with his Imo State counterpart, who assured him that efforts were underway to rescue the victims safely.
The police have not disclosed whether any ransom has been paid.
Meanwhile, security agencies have intensified efforts to locate and rescue the abducted persons.
The Imo State Commissioner of Police, Audu Garba Bosso, said security operatives had used drones to locate a suspected camp where some of the victims were believed to be held. He, however, said the operation had been delayed by intelligence indicating that improvised explosive devices (IEDs) may have been planted around the location.
The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Nadada, to Imo State to coordinate the search-and-rescue operation.
The police said the DIG Operations arrived in Imo State with two Commissioners of Police and reviewed the ongoing operation, deployment of personnel and operational assets.
The police also said they were working with other security agencies to secure the safe rescue of the abducted persons and apprehend those responsible for the attack.
The reported ransom demand remains an allegation by the affected families based on communications they said they received from the abductors.
