Benue women protest after 18 residents reportedly abducted

Women from Tyomu community in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State protested on Tuesday over the reported abduction of 18 residents travelling to a burial in Kogi State. The protesters blocked the Makurdi-Gboko Highway and called on the state government to secure the release of the travellers. They said the group was attacked on Friday along the Adoka-Ankpa Road.

One protester, identified as Doshima, said all 18 passengers were abducted, including eight women. She said the kidnappers had contacted some relatives and demanded N30 million. According to her, residents had raised and paid N3 million, but the victims had not been released.

The report did not say when the alleged payment was made. Joseph Har, the governor’s Security Adviser on Internal Affairs, confirmed that an incident had occurred but said he did not know the exact number of people involved. He said the matter had been reported to security agencies, which were working to locate the victims.

Har said police and security personnel around Adoka were trying to trace the location. He cautioned that the location from which kidnappers made calls might differ from where victims were held, making a rescue operation difficult. State Information Commissioner Solomon Iorpev said the transport company had not immediately reported the incident to the police.

Police spokesperson Peter Aondongu said the command had found an abandoned vehicle but could not confirm the number of victims. The road was later cleared and traffic resumed.