Nine Passengers Still Held at Latest Police Update After Benue Bus Abduction
Police say security teams are continuing efforts to recover passengers abducted from an Enugu-Abuja commercial bus in Ohimini.
Nine passengers remained in captivity at the latest police update after gunmen attacked a commercial bus travelling from Enugu State to Abuja on the Ankpechi–Omutele axis of Ohimini Local Government Area, Benue State.
The Benue State Police Command said 14 passengers were abducted during the attack on the night of August 13 and that five had subsequently been rescued after security operatives launched a rescue operation.
One of the rescued passengers sustained a gunshot injury and was taken to a medical facility in Otukpo, according to police.
The police account means more than half of those initially reported abducted had not been recovered at the latest verified update, leaving an active public-safety concern on an inter-state passenger route.
The command said the bus was travelling from Enugu to Abuja when it was attacked along the Ankpechi–Omutele axis.
IDNN has not independently established the identity, affiliation or motive of the attackers.
Police spokesperson Peter Aondongu said security personnel began a coordinated rescue effort and had recovered five of the passengers at the latest update.
The command said other security agencies were supporting efforts to secure the release of those still being held.
For the passengers’ families, the immediate issue is the safe return of the remaining captives.
For authorities, the attack raises a wider public-safety question over the protection of travellers using the corridor and what can be done to reduce exposure to armed abduction without compromising active rescue operations.
The incident also places renewed pressure on security agencies to establish what happened, identify those responsible and account publicly for the outcome of the rescue effort when operationally safe to do so.
No ransom demand has been independently verified by IDNN for this incident.
IDNN is not publishing details of security deployments, search locations or rescue tactics because disclosure could endanger the abducted passengers or security personnel.
At the latest police-confirmed update, five passengers had been rescued and nine remained in captivity.
That figure is an attributed police position rather than an independent IDNN count and must be updated if authorities announce a material change in the rescue operation.