FACT-CHECK: Is Claim That Bandits Kidnapped 18 Oyo Students Travelling From Sokoto True?

A fresh report that 18 students of Gamji College of Health Technology, Sokoto, travelling to Oyo State were kidnapped by bandits remains unverified after the institution denied that any of its students was abducted.

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SaharaReporters reported on Monday that suspected bandits attacked a chartered bus conveying students from the college to Oke-Ogun in Oyo State, killed the driver and kidnapped the students.

The report cited an Oke-Ogun youth leader, who claimed that the students were travelling to Igboho and had been taken towards the Mokwa axis in Niger State. It also said sources familiar with the incident put the number of abducted students at as many as 18.

However, a subsequent report by Premium Times raised questions about the claim after it contacted the institution named in the report.

The registrar of Gamji College of Health Technology, Abdulrahman Bello, told Premium Times that the report was false. He later provided the newspaper with a statement from the college categorically denying that any of its students had been kidnapped.

“The College wishes to categorically state that the said report is false, misleading and does not reflect the true situation,” the institution said, adding that its students were safe and at their various destinations.

Premium Times also contacted the Niger State Police Command because the original report claimed that the alleged abductors and their victims had moved towards Mokwa. The command’s spokesperson, SP Wasiu Abiodun, said he was not immediately aware of the incident and promised to verify the claim.

The newspaper also contacted the Sokoto State Police Command for confirmation, but its spokesperson did not respond to calls and a WhatsApp message at the time of publication.

There is therefore no independent confirmation, from the police or the institution involved, that the reported abduction took place. The only account supporting the claim in the reports came from sources cited by SaharaReporters, while the college has expressly denied that any of its students was kidnapped.

Verdict: Unverified.

Based on the available reports, it is not established that 18 Oyo-bound students of Gamji College of Health Technology were kidnapped. The claim should therefore not be presented as a confirmed abduction unless the police or another credible authority subsequently verifies it.