The Nigerian Military, Police, Department of State Services (DSS) and other security agencies have intensified search-and-rescue operations to secure the release of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted along the Owerri–Onitsha Road in Imo State.

The victims were reportedly kidnapped on Oct. 1 around Umunoha, with security forces subsequently launching coordinated operations to track down the perpetrators and rescue the abductees.

A report Saturday night by counter-insurgency expert Zagazola Makama said that troops of the 34 Artillery Brigade, alongside personnel of the Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Air Force, Nigeria Police Force, DSS, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and local vigilantes, launched an offensive operation in Amakohia Forest at about 5:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3.

The operation, according to Zagazola.org, followed intelligence gathered during efforts to trace the kidnappers and establish their possible locations.

“The sources said the kidnappers had contacted the families of seven victims using telephone numbers belonging to the abducted persons and demanded a ransom of N50 million for each victim,” Zagazola reported.

“Operatives of the DSS reportedly geolocated the telephone numbers used for the ransom calls, providing intelligence to support efforts to track the suspects,” the report added.

In a related development, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, has deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, DIG Shehu Umar Nadada, to Imo State to provide operational direction for the rescue mission.

The DIG arrived in the state with two commissioners of police and conducted an on-the-spot assessment of the incident and ongoing search-and-rescue efforts by the Imo State Police Command.

The assessment involved the Commissioner of Police, Imo State Command, CP Audu Garba Bosso; Commissioner of Police, Federal Operations, CP Akpan Anifiok; the Commissioner of Police in charge of the Police Mobile Force; and other service commanders and members of the command's management team.

The police delegation reviewed operational strategies, personnel deployment and available operational assets, while issuing additional directives to strengthen the coordinated response.

The Police said tactical teams and operational assets had been deployed across identified areas, with intelligence-led tracking efforts being intensified in collaboration with other security agencies.

DIG Nadada assured the public that the Police would sustain the operation until the abducted persons were safely rescued and the perpetrators apprehended.

He urged residents to remain calm and vigilant, while encouraging anyone with credible information that could assist the operation to contact the Police or the nearest security formation. He added that information received would be treated confidentially.

As of the time of filing this report, the joint operation was ongoing, with security agencies yet to announce the rescue of the 20 abducted prospective corps members.

The authorities have urged the public to avoid spreading unverified information that could undermine ongoing operations.