Three employees of the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria have regained their freedom six days after they were abducted while inspecting crops on the institute’s farm in Oyo State.
The Oyo State Police Command confirmed their release on Wednesday but did not say whether any ransom was paid.
Police confirm release
Police said efforts were continuing to identify and arrest those responsible for the abduction.
Current reports also contain accounts of how and where the workers regained their freedom, but those details have not been independently established by IDNN and remain attributed to sources familiar with the incident.
No arrests have been confirmed in the available reporting.
Ransom claims remain unresolved
Reports cited sources who alleged that the abductors initially demanded ₦40 million for each victim before reducing the demand to ₦50 million for all three workers.
Police did not confirm that account and did not confirm that any money changed hands before the workers were freed.
That distinction remains important.
A ransom demand is not proof that a ransom was paid, and the precise circumstances of the workers’ release remain only partly established.
Security questions remain
The workers were abducted while carrying out routine duties on the institute’s farm.
Their release ends the immediate danger to the three employees, but it leaves wider questions about staff safety, access control and protection around exposed work areas.
The available evidence does not establish that CRIN or security agencies failed in their duties, and IDNN is not making that finding.
The accountability question is what additional safeguards, if any, are being introduced after the incident and whether investigators can identify and arrest those responsible.
For now, the strongest verified fact is that the three workers are free, while the ransom claims and circumstances surrounding their release remain unresolved.