The long days of fear gave way to tears of relief yesterday.

Families of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members learnt that their children had regained freedom after seven days in captivity.

For parents who had spent sleepless nights wondering whether their children were alive and what they might be going through, the news brought an emotional reprieve.

But for some, the joy remained incomplete as they were yet to speak directly with their children, who were receiving medical attention after their release.

The 20 prospective Corps members were abducted on October 1 while travelling from Ibadan to resume at their NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom States.

They were travelling in two buses when armed men intercepted them in Umunoha, Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, and forced them into the bush.

Thirty of them were in the travelling party before being seized by the kidnappers.

Ten of them escaped while the remaining 20 were taken into captivity.

The victims finally regained freedom yesterday at Amakohia-Ubi Village in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State.

How they were rescued

The police spoke about how the victims were rescued in collaboration with sister security agencies – the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Air Force, the Nigerian Navy and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) – after sustained search-and-rescue operations.

The police, in a statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Anietie Iniedu, said: “The victims were rescued and sustained operations and efforts were ongoing to arrest those responsible.”

Imo State Commissioner of Police, Audu Garba Bosso, said the rescue operation was based on intelligence that enabled security agencies to identify the location where the victims were being held.

According to him, operatives moved to the area as part of the search and rescue operation, forcing the criminals to flee while the victims were rescued.

He said: “Our intelligence-led policing gets us in touch with other security agencies.

“All worked in synergy. Having gotten the locations, we moved as per our search and rescue operations. We got to the community where they were kept in captivity. The criminals fled, and we were able to rescue the victims.”

A video sighted by The Nation on X showed the victims in high spirits, with some holding bottled water and soft drinks while others engaged in light-hearted conversations.

The victims have since been taken for medical assessment and necessary care.

NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, visited them at the Department of State Services (DSS) Clinic in Owerri.

He was accompanied by the Imo State Commissioner of Police, the state DSS director and the Commander, 34 Artillery Brigade.

But while the police and Imo State Government attributed the release to security operations, a relative of one of the victims said ransom was paid.

An Instagram user, who said his sister was among the abductees, said the family paid the ransom demanded for her release.

“We paid our ransom in full. They reduced the money to N5 million, and we paid in full,” the relative said.

Asked whether the victims were rescued by security operatives, the relative said: “No security rescued them.”

The relative, however, declined to provide further details, saying: “I don’t think I want all the information about the release out there.”

The police did not say whether ransom was paid.

Parents rejoice

The development expectedly brought profound relief to families in Ibadan.

One of the affected parents, Mrs. Iyabo Akande, who had been at the forefront of efforts by the families to secure the release of the victims, said the news had ended days of anguish.

“We are happy that they have been released. This is what every parent has been waiting and praying for,” she said.

Akande, however, said the families’ joy would only be complete when they were reunited with their children.

“Our joy is not yet complete because we have not been able to speak with them directly. What we have heard is that they are still with the DSS,” she said.

She said the families had endured enormous emotional and financial pressure during the ordeal.

She added that each family had been forced to make separate arrangements after ransom demands were communicated.

“The release did not come for free. The individual parents were responsible for the release in their separate ways,” Akande said.

She said no government provided financial assistance to the affected families.

“No government gave us anything to support the families towards the release of our children.

“We had to do what we could as individual families,” she said.

Akande described the psychological trauma suffered by the families as enormous.

“You cannot sleep properly. You cannot eat properly. You are constantly thinking about where your child is, what the child is going through and whether the child is still alive.

“They need medical attention, psychological support and every necessary assistance because they have gone through a traumatic experience,” she said.

Another parent, Mr Femi Adewale, a public servant, said: “We are very happy and relieved that our children have been released. It has been a very difficult period for us.”

Mrs. Sade Oyeyemi, whose only daughter was among the abductees, said: “I am very happy that she has been released. We only want to see her, hear her voice and know that she is truly safe.”

Mrs. Janet Oladosu also expressed gratitude, saying: “The news of their release is a great relief to us. We thank God that they are alive and have been released.”

Uzodimma, Olubadan ecstatic

Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, was among those who received the news with relief.

The monarch was informed of the release by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma in a telephone conversation at about 5pm.

The Olubadan’s media aide, Adeola Oloko, said the governor personally conveyed the confirmation to the monarch.

The development followed an earlier visit by parents of the abducted prospective corps members to the Olubadan’s Bodija residence, where they sought his intervention and support for their release.

Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Prince Dotun Oyelade, said the state government was relieved by the release.

“Oyo State Government is relieved at the release of our children from the bondage of abduction,” he said.

Oyelade congratulated the Federal Government and the Imo and Oyo State governments, but urged the Federal Government to do more to prevent such incidents.

“The Federal Government, which has the preponderance of power and capacity to effectively nip this embarrassing development in the bud, must be more proactive,” he said.

Asked to confirm reports that ransom was paid, he replied: “Ask Imo government.”

Uzodinma, in a statement, commended the security agencies for what he described as their “quick and coordinated intervention” in securing the release of the victims.

He also praised the collaboration between the Imo and Oyo state governments, saying sensitive information was deliberately withheld because the matter involved human lives.

The governor said the discreet approach adopted by the security agencies helped ensure the safe release of the victims and commended their “patriotism and professionalism”.

He praised the parents and relatives for their patience during the period of uncertainty. (The Nation, but headline reworked)

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