Abducted Ekiti Travellers Released After Ransom Payments

Kehinde Fajobi

Travellers abducted on Emure-ile Road in Emure Local Government Area of Ekiti State have been freed after paying ransoms to their captors.

The victims were taken on Sunday night while travelling in an 18-seater bus from Onitsha, Anambra State, to Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.

The kidnappers initially demanded ₦30 million per person for their release. However, the victims were set free on Wednesday morning after ransoms ranging from ₦1 million to ₦2 million were paid.

The driver of the bus, Mr. Sunday Emmanuel, who was among those abducted, shared details of the ordeal.

“We were kidnapped near Emure-Ekiti, right after we left Eporo-Ekiti,” Emmanuel said. “I was released on Christmas morning after paying ₦1.5 million. Others paid between ₦1 million and ₦2 million.”

Emmanuel recounted the difficult conditions during their captivity.

“We were fed only Garri mixed with red oil and water by the three kidnappers. They didn’t torture us, but we sustained bruises while being moved through the bush,” he said.

The kidnappers, he added, were well-acquainted with the local area, and one of them claimed to be from Niger Republic.

“They know the bushes where cattle are herded,” Emmanuel explained. “They had heavy weapons that they said could only be obtained from soldiers.”

Emmanuel confirmed that all passengers, including a woman and a female corps member, had been released unharmed.

He also noted that the kidnappers did not harm anyone but left the group with some bruises from the long trek through the bush.

“They left us in Ago Paanu, along Ikare Road, where local residents helped us,” Emmanuel said. He also mentioned that the soldiers at a nearby roadblock likely heard the gunshots but did not intervene.