Abductors Slash Ransom for NYSC Victims to N100m As Parents Raise Alarm Over Beating

Abductors holding 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members in Imo State have drastically reduced their ransom demand from N1 billion to N100 million.

ADVERTISE HERE:
[email protected]

The abductors initially demanded N50 million for each victim but have now lowered the amount to N5 million per person.

The development came amid growing fears over the safety of the victims, with their families alleging that the captives are being beaten by their abductors.

The prospective corps members were travelling from Ibadan to NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when gunmen intercepted their buses along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State.

A parent of one of the victims, Alhaja Alimot Akande, said the ransom reduction had offered little relief because the young graduates remained in captivity.

She said the kidnappers had continued to demand N5 million for each victim while allegedly subjecting the captives to physical assault.

“The ransom has been reduced, but our children are still with them. They are demanding N5 million for each person, and they are beating them,” Akande said.

According to her, the abductors have not spared either the male or female victims.

She also disclosed that one of the captives had been allowed to speak with his father, with the kidnappers allegedly monitoring the communication as they assessed the family’s ability to raise money.

Akande appealed to the Federal Government and security agencies to intensify efforts to secure the victims’ release.

The parents have also disputed claims that security operatives rescued some of the abducted passengers, insisting that those who escaped did so by running into the bush.

The incident has triggered renewed concerns over the safety of young Nigerians travelling to their places of national service and calls for urgent action to rescue those still being held.