GUNMEN ABDUCT 10 TRAVELLERS ON OGUN HIGHWAY, DEMAND ₦25M RANSOM AS FAMILIES BEG FOR RESCUE

ABEOKUTA, November 7, 2026 Families of 10 travellers abducted by armed men along the Ijebu-Ode–Ibadan Road in Ogun State are appealing for urgent government intervention after the kidnappers reportedly increased their ransom demand to ₦25 million and issued a 24-hour deadline for payment. Among those reportedly being held is a recently discharged National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member who was travelling home after completing his national service in Edo State.

The victims were travelling in a commercial bus towards Ibadan on Tuesday evening, November 3, when the vehicle was intercepted near Ijebu Awa, a community around the boundary between Ogun and Oyo states. The armed men reportedly took the passengers into a nearby forest, leaving relatives unable to establish their whereabouts until one of the passengers escaped and alerted the victims' families.

One of the identified victims is 24-year-old Olusoji Adedapo, popularly known as Dapo, who had recently completed his NYSC programme in Edo State. His sister, Abigael, told journalists that he had been communicating with the family throughout the journey from Benin City to Ibadan, sending updates about traffic conditions before contact with him was suddenly lost. The last communication reportedly included a video showing congestion on the road.

According to the family, they learnt about the attack after another passenger, who was travelling with the victims and managed to escape, contacted a relative shortly after 7 p.m. The survivor reportedly explained that the bus had been travelling towards Ibadan after passing through Ijebu-Ode when the driver suddenly turned away from the main road and entered a bush path.

The escapee said passengers became apprehensive and questioned the driver's decision to leave the main highway, but the vehicle continued towards the forest. He alleged that armed men subsequently opened fire as the bus approached their location, forcing passengers to scatter. He managed to hide and escape, while the other occupants were taken away. His account also indicated that at least one person may have been shot during the attack, although the available reports have not independently established the person's identity or condition.

The family said the incident was reported at the Ijebu-Ode Police Station, while the abandoned commercial bus and passengers' belongings were later recovered and taken to the station. However, the recovery of the vehicle did not result in the release of the passengers, who were still being held when their relatives spoke to journalists.

The kidnappers reportedly contacted the family using Dapo's telephone and initially demanded ₦20 million for his release. During a subsequent call, the demand was increased to ₦25 million after relatives pleaded for more time to raise the money. Abigael said the abductors insisted on receiving payment within 24 hours and ended the calls after the family struggled to meet their demands.

The family also described the distress of hearing Dapo's voice during one of the calls, saying the kidnappers briefly allowed him to speak before taking the telephone back. Relatives said they were unable to raise the demanded amount and feared for the safety of the captives as the deadline approached. They appealed to the Federal Government, Ogun State authorities and security agencies to intensify efforts to locate the forest hideout and secure the victims' release.

The incident has generated conflicting accounts about the NYSC status of the abducted passengers. Relatives and several media reports have identified recently discharged corps members among those taken, with some accounts initially suggesting that two corps members were travelling in the vehicle and that one escaped. Other reports have described the captives as nine former corps members and the driver. However, the Ogun State Police Command has disputed claims that serving corps members were abducted, insisting that although an abduction occurred, none of the victims was a serving member of the scheme.

Police spokesperson, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, confirmed that people had been abducted along the Ogun corridor of the Ijebu-Ode–Ibadan Road and said the command was working on the matter. He specifically rejected reports describing the incident as the abduction of 10 serving corps members, stressing that no serving corps member was among those taken. The distinction does not necessarily contradict the families' identification of recently discharged NYSC graduates, who would no longer be serving corps members after completing their programmes.

The police confirmation established that an abduction had taken place, but the command's public response did not provide a detailed account of the operation, the identities of all the victims or the progress of efforts to locate them. The conflicting descriptions of the victims' NYSC status have therefore added another layer of uncertainty to an incident already causing distress among several families.

Reports also indicate that police officers and local vigilantes entered the surrounding forest in search of the captives after the escapee raised the alarm. However, the families said they had not received confirmation that the victims had been located or rescued when they appealed publicly for assistance. The kidnappers' reported use of a victim's telephone to communicate with relatives has also heightened concerns about the captives' vulnerability and the pressure being placed on families to raise money quickly.

The Ijebu-Ode–Ibadan corridor connects communities in Ogun and Oyo states and is used by commercial drivers, private motorists, traders, students and other travellers moving between the two states. The latest incident has renewed concerns about the safety of motorists on the route, particularly around sections where traffic congestion, poor visibility and access roads leading into forested areas may leave travellers exposed to attacks.

For families of the abducted passengers, the immediate concern remains the safe return of their relatives. The reported ransom demand of ₦25 million is beyond what some of them say they can afford, while the uncertainty surrounding the captives' location and condition has intensified calls for a coordinated rescue operation. Their appeal is directed not only at the Ogun State Government but also at the police, military and other security agencies with the capacity to conduct operations in the surrounding forest.

The police have acknowledged the abduction and said the matter is being handled, but further public information about the search and the condition of the victims remains limited in the reports available. As the families continue to seek intervention, the central questions are whether security operatives can locate the kidnappers, establish the condition of everyone being held and secure their release without further harm. The incident has once again placed the security of Nigeria's inter-state highways under scrutiny, with relatives waiting for concrete news that the missing passengers will return home safely.