Few of the passengers who were abducted along Itobe-Ajegwu-Anyigba road in Ofu local government of Kogi State have escaped.
The kidnappers were said to have attacked two buses filled with passengers.
One of the buses has registration number, Ebonyi NKE 737 XA.
A motorcycle rider was also said to have been forcefully whisked to unknown destination alongside the travellers in the incident which reportedly happened on Saturday.
A resident, Ahiaba Michael, said security operatives, including vigilantes and hunters, trailed the armed hoodlums shortly after the incident but were not successful.
However, a security source disclosed that barely three hours after the attack, one Monday Agi was arrested in connection with the incident.
The suspect allegedly lost his way due to mounting pressure by the security personnel.
The source said: “When interrogated, the suspect claimed to be on board of a trailer from Ekiti, but decided to alight around the scene of the incident to continue the journey by trekking to his destination.
“He said when he heard gunshot, he decided to flee into the bush with two herders whom he claimed he did not know.”
The source added that the suspect is already in the police custody while the manhunt against the armed hoodlums is being intensified.
Meanwhile, three of the kidnapped victims, who identified themselves as Micheal Adejo, Monday and Mariam Yakubu, claimed to have escaped from their abductors after they dozed off in the forest.
The escapees noted that the hoodlums numbering up to 10 operated with AK 47 and Pump Action rifles.
“The bus I boarded suddenly ran into their barricade. On stopping, they filed us out, wielding AK 47 rifles and pump Action guns . The second bus behind us was shot at and the driver rammed into cashew trees. All of us were taken to the bush thereafter.
“On our way, we were stopped, and asked to lay face down. In the process, they searched our pockets and evacuated everything in it , including, money, our cell phones and other valuables. We are many , all passengers from two Hummer buses,” he said.
According to Adaji, another escapee, they crawled out of their assailants’ cell when they retired to a place and slept off.
“When I noticed that the hoodlums closer to my position started sleeping , I started crawling gradually. After a distance was covered, I got up ,and with luck I ran until I reach a village with these two others,” said Adaji.
The Kogi state police command’s spokesperson, ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, was contacted over the incident , but failed to respond to text and call as the time of filing this report.
(Daily Trust)
