• Five abducted passengers from a Benue Links bus have been rescued by police while thirteen passengers are still being held by kidnappers after the Makurdi–Otukpo road attack
• The Benue State Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, said none of the rescued victims has been confirmed as a JAMB candidate.
• He also disclosed that rescue teams have been deployed to Otukpo to secure the release of the remaining victims

The Benue State Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, has confirmed that five passengers abducted along the Makurdi–Otukpo road have been rescued.

The victims were among passengers travelling in a Benue Links bus that was attacked by gunmen on Wednesday night.

Speaking to journalists in Makurdi on Friday, April 17, Emenari said 13 passengers were still being held by the abductors.

According to the police commissioner, there were 18 people in the vehicle, including the driver, when the attack occurred.

He explained that three passengers were not taken by the abductors, while two others managed to escape, leaving 13 victims still in captivity.

“For now, we cannot say this is what happened because the Benue Links bus driver picked those passengers up along the road.

“So, the five of them that were rescued so far, none of them are JAMB candidates. And from our questions, too, when we were debriefing the people that were rescued, there is no indication that they are JAMB candidates. But we suspect that one or two of them might be JAMB candidates.

“The most important thing now is for us to rescue the passengers, no matter who they are. The 13 victims are still in a danger zone,” the CP said.

Emenari assured residents that security operatives were intensifying efforts to rescue the remaining victims.

“We are on top of the situation. Our rescue teams are in Otukpo, and we are not going to leave until the last victim is rescued.

“We have put in motion everything that is needed to flush out every criminal in that bush. However, our plans are in our chest, but surely we will get them,” he added.

The commissioner also reaffirmed the command’s determination to tackle criminal activities across the state.

“Right now, we are doing clearing operations across the state, including Apa and Logo LGAs.

“This is April, the beginning of the farming season, where you normally have volume of farmers and herders crises. So, they have been planning to strike, but we have contained them,” he stated.

The passengers were reportedly travelling to Otukpo, with some believed to be heading for the ongoing Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board examination.

Police had earlier stated that 14 passengers were abducted during the attack.

Bandits kidnap six travellers on Shagba–Babanla road in Kwara

Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that suspected armed bandits abducted six people along the Shagba–Babanla road under the Igbaja Division in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State.

Those reportedly kidnapped include Wasiu Wahabi, Gani, Abdulateef Meco and Alhaji Sarafa Raheem, who serves as the Chief Imam of Babanla town.

Residents said the attack occurred in the evening when armed men suddenly appeared along the route and forcefully took the travellers away to an unknown destination.

Witnesses reported that the gunmen operated for several minutes before fleeing the area with their captives.