Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), working alongside the military and the police, have arrested five suspected members of a criminal syndicate responsible for the Independence Day abduction of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members in Imo State.
The suspects were apprehended during a joint operations executed across Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and Aba South Local Government Area of Abia State between October 10 and October 14. Security forces recovered a cache of arms from the criminal hideouts, including AK-47 rifles, an English pistol, and several rounds of ammunition.
Three other gang members fled with gunshot injuries during the joint operations in Rivers and Abia states. According to a security source, attached to the operation, he stated that a manhunt has been launched to track down the remnants of the gang.
“Five among those responsible for the abduction of the graduates have been arrested in a joint operation carried out by operatives of the DSS, police, and the Army. Three of them escaped into the bush with gunshot injuries sustained during the encounter with security operatives, and efforts are ongoing to arrest them,” the source disclosed.
The 20 graduates were kidnapped on October 1 along the Owerri-Onitsha Road while travelling to their deployment camps. While the police previously claimed to have rescued the victims at Amakohia Ubi Village, the affected families have consistently disputed the official account, insisting that a heavy ransom was paid to secure their release.
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