KEY POINTS
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Gunmen abducted six mourners travelling from Kano to Benue.
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The kidnappers reportedly demanded ₦15 million for their release.
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Police and local vigilantes are working to rescue the victims.
Gunmen have abducted six people travelling from Kano State to Benue State to bury a woman, abandoning her corpse along the road as they took the victims into the bush.
The victims were travelling to Okpoga, headquarters of Okpokwu Local Government Area of Benue State, when armed men intercepted their vehicle along the notorious Adoka Road on Friday evening.
According to accounts from sympathisers, the group left Kano with the corpse of a woman who had died in the state. The deceased’s husband and five of his friends were reportedly in the vehicle when the gunmen stopped them at about 8pm.
The attackers abducted all six occupants and took them into the bush, leaving the woman’s body behind.
As of Monday, the victims had yet to regain their freedom, while the kidnappers were reportedly demanding ₦15 million for their release.
Corpse recovered and deposited in mortuary
A sympathiser who raised the alarm on social media said operatives of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) discovered the corpse along the road on Saturday.
The officials reportedly took the body to a police station in Adoka, after which it was deposited in a mortuary.
The incident has added to concerns over the safety of travellers using roads in parts of Benue State, where kidnappings have become a recurring security challenge.
Council chairman, police confirm abduction
The Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, confirmed the incident in a telephone interview with journalists on Monday.
Ogiri said the driver of the vehicle was his friend and described the abduction as traumatic. He also confirmed that the kidnappers were demanding ₦15 million.
According to the council chairman, security agencies were working to track down the abductors and secure the victims’ release.
He added that local vigilantes and youths were also supporting efforts to rescue the six people.
The spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, DSP Peter Aondongu, also confirmed that the incident occurred on Friday.
Aondongu said police operatives were making efforts to rescue the victims, although he did not provide further details about the operation.
Benue communities face recurring kidnappings
The abduction comes amid repeated reports of kidnappings along roads in the Otukpo, Adoka and Ohimini areas of Benue State.
On October 16, gunmen reportedly abducted Catholic priest Rev. Fr. John Otache and seven other people as they returned from a village market. The attack occurred along the Ugbokolo-Ajegbe-Awume Road, before Ipiga village in Ohimini Local Government Area.
In August, armed men also abducted 14 passengers travelling to Abuja along the Otukpo-Adoka Road.
The latest incident has renewed concerns about the security of major routes in the state, particularly for travellers moving between communities for family and social obligations.
Authorities have yet to announce the rescue of the six abducted mourners.
