Imagine being taken from a bus, forced into a thick forest at gunpoint, and told you have one month to live. That was the terrifying reality for 15 National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and six other Nigerians who were recently rescued from a kidnappers’ den in Kogi State. Their ordeal began when the vehicle they were travelling in, heading from Bayelsa State to Abuja after completing their NYSC orientation, was intercepted.
David Ayodele, one of the rescued corps members, described the moment of the abduction. The driver of their bus, sensing danger, apparently tried to make a quick escape. But the assailants were ready. “Who’s the driver? Who’s the driver?” they demanded, as Ayodele recounts. Soon, the doors were flung open, and the terrified passengers were forced out and marched into the bush, with bullets flying into the air to intimidate them.
Once deep inside the forest, the victims weren't just threatened; they were physically and verbally abused. Ayodele spoke of being subjected to “flogging and kicking and shouting and stuff” as they were herded further into the dense vegetation. This wasn't a short trip; they were made to trek for a considerable distance under the harsh conditions.
Then came the chilling ultimatum. In a clearing, the kidnappers laid out their grim plan: the captives would be held for a month, and then they would all be killed. “They asked us to sit down, they asked who would drink water, that we would be here for one month, so they would kill all of us,” Ayodele said. This brutal threat had an immediate effect, instilling a paralyzing fear.
The psychological impact was profound. The warning that anyone who dared to move without explicit permission would be shot meant that not a single abductee attempted to escape or even shift their position. They were frozen by the threat, too terrified to make any move that might provoke their captors.
Their salvation came after what felt like an eternity of trekking through the unforgiving terrain. Fortunately, security operatives, a combined force of the Nigerian Army, police, and Department of State Services, along with local hunters, located the victims. Ayodele expressed deep gratitude for their swift intervention, which brought a sudden end to the harrowing experience in the Ofu Local Government Area.
These corps members had just finished their orientation programme in Bayelsa State and were in the process of relocation to Abuja. The organised transport system after orientation usually involves vehicles heading to various states, and they had managed to find one going to Abuja when they were ambushed. The rescue operation freed all 21 individuals who had been held captive in that notorious area of Kogi State.