The Enugu State command of the Nigeria Police Force has confirmed the attack and abduction of passengers at the Amechi-Idodo axis of the Enugu-Abakaliki federal highway. According to SaharaReporters, on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen abducted 11 passengers.
The victims, reportedly students from tertiary institutions in Ebonyi State, were traveling in a commercial bus from Awka, Anambra State to Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital. On Friday, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, the Command’s spokesperson, confirmed the incident in a release, revealing that some passengers had been rescued, while three remained in the kidnappers’ den.
Ndukwe initially described reports of the kidnapping as “spurious, mischievous, and misleading.” However, he later confirmed that a manhunt had been launched to rescue the three missing persons. His statement read: “The Enugu State Police Command wishes to categorically state that the report alleging that eleven people were kidnapped at the Amechi-Idodo area of the Enugu/Abakaliki highway is false, mischievous, and aimed at creating panic and misleading the public.”
He continued, “This stance is given the total contradiction and distortion of facts surrounding the incident of an attempted abduction along the said road on July 16, 2024, around 6 pm. Contrary to the misleading report, Joint Security Operatives, upon receipt of a distress call, moved to the Enugu/Ebonyi States border point along the Enugu/Abakaliki Expressway. They rescued thirteen occupants of a Nissan commercial bus. However, three others, who ran into nearby bushes upon the attack, are yet to be located.”
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Kanayo Uzuegbu, has ordered ongoing operations to locate and rescue the three missing victims and hunt down the assailants. “He reassures commitment to sustain collaborative efforts with internal and neighboring States’ security forces to ensure watertight security on major highways,” Ndukwe added.
SaharaReporters previously reported on May 6, 2024, about gunmen in military uniforms laying siege on the same road, injuring several passengers. Attacks on this road have become frequent, occurring about four poles apart from two military checkpoints immediately after crossing the Ebonyi/Enugu boundary in Amechi-Idodo, Nkanu East local government area of Enugu State.
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