Michael HundeyinI am being held hostage by unknown gunmen at Benue(sic). Please help me. They are refusing to let NYSC corps members go. N50 million. I haven’t escaped, I’m still with them, send help, my location is on.
These were the words Esther Otegiri, a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, penned on her WhatsApp status moments after kidnappers took her and others travelling through the Otukpo area of the Enugu-Benue highway on Thursday, January 11.
Esther was travelling back to Benue State from Edo to continue her service when the incident occurred. When help failed to arrive, the orphaned girl lost hope until her uncle negotiated and paid a lower sum to her captors.
Months later, the same events played out on another Thursday as kidnappers again struck the same highway and took 20 medical students of the Universities of Jos and Maiduguri. The ransom demand — N50 million.
The recent abduction has drawn public criticism of the country’s security agencies’ responses to public cries for help.
Kingsley Aondona, one of the abductees, took to X to share details of the abduction and a phone number anyone willing to contribute to the ransom payments could reach out to. However, with the students still in captivity with death threats hanging over their heads, several Nigerians believe Aondona’s post should have aided rescue efforts.
READ MORE: Kidnappers Allow Abducted Medical Students to Raise N50m Ransom Via WhatsApp Chat
But, as was the case with Esther in January, communicating with the public from captivity does not translate to rescue.
Beyond these two cases, EQ was able to find at least four more abduction incidents that occurred at the same location in Benue in the past eight months and made it to the media.
NOT THE FIRST TIME
On December 21, gunmen took a doctor and his son when they struck six buses containing travelling passengers. The buses were heading from Benue to Enugu, and the gunmen struck at Otukpo.
As was the case with the other two abductions, this abduction happened on a Thursday. Both the doctor and his son regained their freedom days later, but there was no record of the other abductees.
A month later on January 11, kidnappers again struck the same route and abducted nine persons. Again, it was a Thursday.
A week later, troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), in collaboration with the police and other security agencies, announced a successful rescue effort.
READ MORE: TABLE: Names of All 20 Abducted UNIMAID, UniJos Medical Students
Emmanuel Barki, the acting rector of Benue State Polytechnic, Ugbokolo, and some of the institution’s staff became victims on July 11. Again, it was a Thursday.
“We gathered that they were all on their way from Makurdi to Ugbokolo and were waylaid and got kidnapped along the Otukpo-Enugu highway,” a source told a newspaper.
“The kidnappers were said to have abandoned the school bus they were travelling in and whisked them into the bush.
“From what we heard today, the kidnappers have already contacted the family of the Rector and are demanding a ransom of N70 million.”
The only other reported incident EQ found in the past eight months, occurred on June 13. EQ did not find media reports about it, but a month later, police arraigned suspects before a Makurdi Chief Magistrate Court.
Five suspects appeared before the court, and the magistrate adjourned the matter until September 3 for hearing.
As was the case with the other abductions, June 13 was a Thursday, meaning all six abductions along the route in the past eight months occurred on the same day of the week, on the same highway, and still managed to go unchecked.
On Saturday morning, SP Catherine Anene, the spokesperson for Benue State Police Command, told EQ during a telephone interview that the police was investigating the most recent occurrence. Muyiwa Adejobi, Force Public Relations Officer, posted on X reiterating Anene’s stance.
The post In 8 Months, Kidnappers Struck Benue Highway at Least 6 Times. All Happened on Thursdays appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.
