Benue State Commissioner of Police, CP Ifeanyi Emenari, has said that he is leading a manhunt for the abductors of passengers, including 14 candidates of the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, following an attack by suspected gunmen in Otukpo.
Emenari, stated this this yesterday while confirming the incident saying “I am in Otukpo now with all my team and DPOs who are here in the bush, and I am heading the operation.
“What happened was that one Benue Links bus carrying passengers coming to Otukpo was stopped and attacked by hoodlums, and 14 passengers were kidnapped, but one was able to escape,”.
According to him, a full-scale rescue operation is ongoing, with security operatives already deployed to the forest to track down the kidnappers and secure the victims’ release.
The command has launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the trip, particularly the decision to embark on the journey at night, he said.
The ommissioner went on to say that “We know that Benue Links has a policy and don’t usually drive at night. So from what I got, they have already closed, but the driver, for reasons best known to him which we are still trying to find out, picked passengers along the road, and when he came here, the story you have is what we are having.
“But as we are investigating, we are on the ground to make sure that the victims are rescuedx
Besides, the management of Benue Links confirmed the incident, disclosing that the driver is currently under investigation for allegedly violating the company’s directive against night travel.
The incident involved a Benue Links bus was ambushed along the Benue Burnt Bricks axis of Otukpo Local Government Area between 7@@ p.m. and 8 p.m. on Wednesday.