Armed men suspected to be bandits on Sunday abducted an unspecified number of church members along Makurdi–Naka road in Gwer West Local Government Area of Benue.

Zagazola learnt that the incident occurred at about 7:10 p.m. when a bus conveying members of the Chosen Church from Makurdi to Naka was attacked near Tyolaha village.

According to sources, the driver of the bus, Ogijo Jibrin, 52, told police that the gunmen emerged suddenly and blocked the highway at gunpoint.

Two other buses carrying passengers managed to reverse and escape, while an unknown number of people from his bus were taken away into the bush.

The sources added that Jibrin and seven passengers managed to escape and later reported the incident to the police.

Army troops of Operation Whirlstroke, alongside Divisional Police Officer, Naka, promptly mobilised patrol and tactical teams to the scene.

The joint team rescued the driver and the seven passengers, while a coordinated operation was launched to rescue the abducted victims.

The Commissioner of Police, through the Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of Makurdi, directed the deployment of operatives from the Counter-Terrorism Unit, Anti-Kidnapping Squad, Operation Zenda, State Intelligence Bureau and Police Mobile Force.

The command said bush combing operations were ongoing to track the perpetrators and ensure safe rescue of the victims.

It added that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had commenced a full investigation into the incident. (Zagazola, excluding headline)