‘She messaged me about kidnappers’ — Mother of abducted NYSC member

By Enitan Abdultawab

The mother of one of the NYSC members reportedly abducted along the Owerri Onitsha Expressway in Imo State has recounted the last moments she had contact with her daughter before she was allegedly taken by gunmen.

The woman, whose viral video appealing for help has circulated online, said her daughter left Samonda in Ibadan, Oyo State, for her National Youth Service Corps orientation camp in Abia State.

According to her, the young woman remained in contact with the family during the journey and used her phone location to keep them updated on her movement.

She said that at about 6am on Thursday, the daughter sent a message to the family’s WhatsApp group indicating that kidnappers had attacked their vehicle before briefly placing a call.

“She took off from Samonda in Ibadan to Abia. By 6am, she called in our family group chat and used her location so we could see her live updates. She then typed something about kidnappers and immediately called briefly. Since then, she has been unreachable,” the mother said.

The family later received information that the vehicle carrying the corps members had made a stopover in Abia State before continuing towards Imo.

“We later got other updates that they had a stopover along Abia, en route to Imo, at about 4am this morning,” she added.

The incident reportedly occurred around the Umunoha axis of the Owerri Onitsha Expressway in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, where gunmen were said to have attacked two commercial buses.

Several travellers, including corps members heading to orientation camps in the South East and South South, were reportedly caught in the attack.

The two buses were said to have been travelling from the Lagos direction towards Anambra when they were intercepted. Reports from the scene indicated that passengers were robbed before some were allegedly taken into a nearby bush.

A video circulating online showed the two buses abandoned on the highway, while residents and other road users gathered around the scene.

The mother, who appealed for urgent intervention, said she was deeply worried about her daughter and called on the authorities to help locate the abducted passengers.

The exact number of people abducted in the incident remained unclear as of the time of filing this report.

The Imo State Police Command had also not officially confirmed the attack or provided details on the number of victims.

The reported abduction has raised fresh concerns over the safety of travellers using the Owerri Onitsha Expressway, particularly as many young Nigerians are currently travelling to NYSC orientation camps across the country.

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