The kidnappers of six students from the Nigerian Law School have reportedly demanded a ransom of ₦20 million for each victim, bringing the total to ₦120 million.
DAILY GAZETTE gathered that the students were abducted in Benue State while traveling from Onitsha, Anambra State, to the Yola campus of the Nigerian Law School in Adamawa State.
The incident occurred on Saturday night, July 26, as the students were returning to campus after their court externship break, with academic activities set to resume on Monday.
A fellow student at the Yola campus, Damilare Adenola, confirmed the abduction:
“Six students of the Nigerian Law School have been reportedly kidnapped by suspected bandits while travelling to resume school after their court externship break.”
He further identified some of the victims as Rev. Ernest Okafor, Ogbuka Fabian, Nwamma Philip, Okechukwu Obadiegwu, Obalem Emmanuel, and Obiorah David.
Adenola added that the abduction reportedly took place along the route between Wukari in Taraba State and a region of Benue State, a location known for insecurity and frequent attacks on commuters.
New developments on Sunday revealed that the suspected kidnappers had made contact with relatives and colleagues of the victims to negotiate the ransom payment.
One student, Chisom, recounted how he initially dismissed the news but became alarmed after trying to reach some of the missing students:
“We heard the news this morning (Sunday) that some of our classmates were abducted. I didn’t want to believe it, so I started making a few calls because I know all of them. I tried to call three of the victims, but their numbers were switched off.”
He continued: “When I tried one of them again, he picked up the call. There was noise in the background, but when he finally spoke, he screamed that he had been kidnapped and told a colleague to send N20m for his release.”
Chisom also spoke with another classmate in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, who had heard about the abduction days earlier.
“He told me he’d been aware of the abduction since Thursday. According to him, the wife of one of the victims reached out to inform him about it. That was when we confirmed that the kidnapping happened in Benue State,” he added.
A student leader at the Yola campus, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, said:
“We are currently in Yola. We have contacted the Adamawa State Police Command. We are just waiting for more updates from them. We haven’t got any concrete information yet.”
When reached on Sunday, the spokesperson for the Adamawa State Police Command, Yahaya Suleiman, confirmed that the command was aware of the abduction, but emphasized that the incident did not occur within their jurisdiction:
“The abduction did not occur inside Adamawa State. I will encourage you to contact the Benue State Police Command for more details.”
He also assured the public that efforts were underway to rescue the victims:
“We cooperate not only with the police in other states but also with other sister agencies to ensure that those coming into Adamawa are safe, without harassment or intimidation.”
“The command is collaborating with officers and men of the Benue State Police Command to ensure these students are rescued,” he added.
At the time of this report, attempts to reach Anene Catherine, spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, were unsuccessful, as calls and messages sent to her phone had not been returned.
This incident adds to the growing list of security challenges faced by law school students.
In 2022, gunmen abducted two students from the Agbani campus of the Nigerian Law School in Enugu State.
Those students were reportedly kidnapped at Eke Agbani Market, where they had gone to buy food.
