Imo police locate suspected camp holding abducted NYSC candidates

Police in Imo State say they have identified the location where about 19 prospective National Youth Service Corps members abducted in the state are being held. The state Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, disclosed the development while speaking with reporters on Saturday. He said security operatives had used drones to locate the suspected camp after tracking the abductors into a bush area.

The prospective corps members were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when gunmen abducted them at about 6.30 a.m. on Thursday along the Owerri-Onitsha Road near Umunoha, according to the supplied report. Police later said 10 people had been rescued at the scene after intervention by police and other security agencies.

Officials were still verifying the precise number of people who remained in captivity. Bosso said officers had followed the abductors to a particular location on Friday, but could not immediately enter the area shown by the drone coordinates. He said intelligence indicated that the camp had been planted with improvised explosive devices.

The commissioner said security agencies were preparing to move into the area with heavy equipment, including bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers. He said the aim was to rescue the victims unhurt. No group had claimed responsibility for the abduction in the supplied material.

The police did not provide a confirmed timetable for entering the camp or details of any arrests. The statement also did not identify the remaining victims or give further information about their condition.