Suspected gunmen have abducted no fewer than 14 passengers, most of them candidates of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), in an attack along the Makurdi–Otukpo road in Benue State.
The incident occurred on Wednesday evening, April 15, 2026, between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., as the victims were travelling in a Benue Links commercial bus from Makurdi to Otukpo . The majority of the passengers were young men and women heading to sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) scheduled for Thursday .
Reports indicate that the 18-seater bus was ambushed by armed men a few kilometres from Otukpo town. The attackers stopped the vehicle and forced most of the passengers into a nearby forest . Only the driver and one passenger reportedly escaped from the scene .
The Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, confirmed the development, stating that security agents have been deployed to rescue the victims . “The victims are young people coming to Otukpo to write JAMB. Security agents have been deployed, and efforts are ongoing to rescue them,” he said .
Benue State Commissioner of Police, CP Ifeanyi Enemari, disclosed that he is personally leading the rescue operation in Otukpo. “I’m in Otukpo now. My team and all DPOs are in the bush, and I am heading the operation,” he stated .
The police commissioner noted that the bus may have been operating outside approved hours, as Benue Links has a policy against night travel due to security concerns . An investigation into the circumstances of the journey is underway.
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