The Police in Benue State on Friday rescued eight victims abducted along the Ankpenchi-Ogobia axis of Ohimini Local Government Area of the state.

State Commissioner of Police, Cletus Nwadiogbu, said the eight rescued victims were among the nine remaining hostages forced into the bush, while the ninth victim died from gunshot injuries sustained during the kidnap operation.

Nwadiogbu, who made the disclosure during a press conference at the police headquarters in Makurdi, noted that the rescue followed a gun battle between police operatives and members of the suspected kidnapping syndicate.

He said the incident occurred at about 11pm on Sunday, when armed men intercepted a commercial bus travelling from Abakaliki in Ebonyi State to Abuja along the Ankpenchi-Ogobia axis of Benue State and abducted a total of 13 passengers.

He explained that police operatives immediately commenced search and rescue operations, resulting in the rescue of four victims shortly afterwards, while nine others were held by the kidnappers.

The police commissioner said the operatives of the Violent Crime Response Unit, alongside other tactical teams, had been conducting search and rescue operations since September 14 before acting on credible intelligence in the early hours of Friday.

He said the operatives, at about 6:30am, stormed the suspected kidnappers’ camp around the Ankpenchi axis of Amla forest in Otukpo, where they engaged the criminals in a gun battle.

“The operation resulted in an exchange of gunfire with the kidnappers, during which eight of the remaining victims were successfully rescued,” he said.

The commissioner, however, said the victims informed the police that the ninth person, who sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen during the initial attack, died while the kidnappers were moving him between locations in the forest.

He said the deceased was allegedly kept alive by the kidnappers in an attempt to obtain ransom before he eventually died from his injuries.

Nwadiogbu described the death as painful and unfortunate, adding that police operatives were still in the forest to recover the victim’s corpse and apprehend fleeing members of the syndicate.

The commissioner also warned travellers against embarking on night journeys, particularly along routes considered vulnerable to attacks.

He advised motorists and passengers travelling long distances to stop in towns and continue their journeys the following day, stressing the need for members of the public to exercise greater caution due to the security situation.

Nwadiogbu said the command was intensifying intelligence gathering and operations to identify and arrest members of the kidnapping syndicate just as he noted that the rescue was the second major operation involving kidnapped travellers along the route in recent weeks.( Daily Trust)