At least two commercial buses carrying passengers, including prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), have reportedly been attacked by suspected kidnappers along the Onitsha-Owerri Road in Imo State.
The incident, which reportedly occurred on Thursday, October 1, has sparked anxiety among families and relatives of travellers who were heading to various destinations across the South-East and South-South regions.
The exact number of passengers abducted remained unclear as of the time of filing this report, while efforts were reportedly ongoing to establish the identities of those taken away and their whereabouts.
According to eyewitness accounts, armed men allegedly stopped several vehicles travelling along the highway and forced passengers and drivers out of the vehicles before taking them into the surrounding area.
Among those reportedly affected were prospective corps members travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to various NYSC orientation camps in Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Imo and Abia states.
The affected prospective corps members were said to have boarded buses operated by Uko Akwa Ibom Motors at the Samonda area of Ibadan before beginning their journey to the eastern part of the country.
The incident has generated particular concern because many of the travellers were young Nigerians travelling for the compulsory national service programme.
A video circulating on social media showed distressed relatives gathered at the transport company’s motor park in Ibadan as they tried to obtain information about their loved ones.
Some families reportedly travelled to the park after learning that the buses carrying their relatives had been attacked.
In the video, relatives were seen discussing the incident and appealing to other travellers and members of the public with information to come forward.
One passenger who reportedly escaped the attack was also seen filming one of the abandoned commercial buses by the roadside.
While recounting his experience, the passenger indicated that the attackers had taken passengers and the driver from another vehicle.
“They carried everybody, including the driver,” he said.
He identified the transport company as Uko Akwa Ibom Motors and explained that the bus he had been travelling in was among the vehicles targeted by the attackers.
According to him, one bus was attacked before the vehicle in which he was travelling was also targeted.
“Nah the first bus be this, dey don carry everybody including the driver, they don carry all of them. Nah the second bus be our own bus,” he said in the video.
The account provided a disturbing indication of the speed with which the attackers allegedly operated, leaving vehicles abandoned along the highway.
The incident has caused heightened anxiety among families whose children and relatives were travelling to NYSC orientation camps.
A family member reportedly said that her child was among the prospective corps members who departed from the Samonda motor park in Ibadan for the eastern part of the country.
According to the woman, the family initially had no reason to suspect that anything was wrong because the traveller had communicated with relatives earlier in the day.
She said the child sent a message to the family’s WhatsApp group before communication was suddenly interrupted.
The woman reportedly said the last message from the traveller contained the word “kidnapper”, after which attempts to establish further contact failed.
Repeated calls to the traveller’s telephone number reportedly went unanswered, with the line subsequently becoming unreachable.
The development heightened fears among family members, who were left uncertain about the fate and location of their loved ones.
Other relatives were also reportedly seen at the motor park attempting to gather information about the buses, their passengers and the circumstances surrounding the attack.
Information emerging from the area also suggested that the incident may have involved more vehicles than the two commercial buses initially identified.
According to accounts attributed to travellers and relatives, several vehicles were reportedly stopped along the road, with passengers from some of them allegedly taken away.
However, the number of vehicles involved and the total number of people abducted had not been independently established at the time of reporting.
The identities of the suspected attackers and their specific motive were also not immediately clear.
The incident underscores the continuing security concerns associated with major highways in parts of the South-East, particularly for travellers undertaking long-distance journeys.
The Onitsha-Owerri corridor is an important transportation route connecting communities and commercial centres in the region, with thousands of passengers using the road daily.
The reported attack has therefore raised fresh concerns about the safety of motorists, commercial transport operators and passengers travelling through the area.
The timing of the incident has further heightened concern because it occurred as prospective NYSC members were travelling to their respective orientation camps.
The orientation programme marks the beginning of the national service year for graduates deployed to different states across Nigeria. Prospective corps members typically travel from their home states to designated orientation camps before being posted to their places of primary assignment.
For families, the reported abduction has transformed what should have been a routine journey into a source of considerable fear and uncertainty.
Parents and relatives of the affected travellers have continued to seek information regarding their whereabouts, while calls for urgent intervention to secure the release of those reportedly abducted are expected to intensify.
Authorities and security agencies are expected to investigate the incident, determine the number of persons affected and establish the circumstances surrounding the reported attack.
Until official confirmation is provided, details circulating about the number of victims, the identities of those abducted and the circumstances of the incident remain subject to verification.
The reported attack nevertheless highlights the vulnerability of passengers travelling long distances and the need for strengthened security measures along major highways, particularly during periods when large numbers of young Nigerians are travelling to NYSC orientation camps across the country.
