IBADAN — Emotional scenes unfolded in Ibadan as 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, who were abducted along the Owerri-Onitsha Expressway in Imo State on October 1, successfully reunited with their families following their release from captivity.
The young graduates, alongside one other abducted passenger, regained their freedom after spending seven days in hostage conditions in the forest areas of Imo State.
Following initial medical evaluations and debriefing by security agencies in Owerri, the rescued victims were transported back to Oyo State, where parents, relatives, and community members gathered in jubilation to receive them.
One of the freed prospective corps members, Akande Morenikeji, described the seven-day ordeal in captivity as physically and mentally exhausting, though she dismissed earlier media speculation suggesting that the victims were held in heavy iron restraints.
Relieved parents expressed gratitude for the safe return of their children while calling on the Federal Government and military authorities to bolster highway security patrols along interstate corridors to prevent recurring mass abductions targeting prospective corps members and travelers.
