Benue State Commissioner of Police, Cletus Nwadiogbu, has commended officers following the rescue of thirteen passengers recently abducted along the Otukpo-Adoka road.
Naija News understands that the passengers were abducted last week while travelling from Enugu to Abuja.
The latest rescue increased the total number of victims saved from the kidnapping incident to 18, which occurred between the Ankpechi and Omutele villages along the Otukpo-Adoka road.
In a statement released on Friday, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) DSP Peter Aondongu reported that the victims were rescued around 2 a.m. on Thursday in the Amla-Icho Forest, located in the Otukpo Local Government Area.
This rescue, he said followed five days of relentless search and rescue efforts conducted by the police and local security forces.
Aondongu explained that the operatives, acting on reliable intelligence, initiated a nighttime operation in the forest where they engaged the kidnappers.
He noted that the kidnappers escaped under the cover of night, leaving behind their captives, who were successfully rescued without injury.
The police spokesperson added that this operation was a continuation of an earlier gunfight with the suspects on August 16, during which one of the kidnappers was neutralized.
He said an AK-47 rifle and five rounds of live ammunition were recovered during the operation while efforts were being made to track and arrest the fleeing suspects.
Aondongu further explained that the recent rescue exposed inconsistencies in the passenger confession, which initially stated that only nine victims were left after five had been rescued earlier.
The PPRO noted that further verification, however, confirmed that four more passengers were not included in the confession, raising the total number of rescued victims to 13.
He mentioned that the rescued passengers were taken to a medical facility for care before being transported to their respective destinations via a chartered bus.
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