The abductors of six Nigerian Law School students have issued a chilling warning, threatening to execute the victims if the N120 million ransom demanded is not paid. The students, identified as Rev. Ernest Okafor, Ogbuka Fabian, Nwamma Philip, Okechukwu Obadiegwu, Obalem Emmanuel, and Obiorah David, were kidnapped on Saturday, July 26, while traveling from Onitsha, Anambra State, to the Yola campus of the Nigerian Law School in Adamawa State.
According to reports, the kidnappers initially demanded N20 million per student, but the ransom demand has since been increased. A source privy to a phone conversation between the kidnappers and one of the students revealed that the abductors are now demanding N50 million per student, totaling N300 million, but another report suggests the total ransom demand is N120 million, N20 million per student. The kidnappers have warned against involving security operatives, claiming they can monitor any such efforts and will kill the students if their demands are not met.
The students were reportedly abducted along the Wukari-Benue border highway, a notorious route prone to kidnappings and attacks. The Adamawa State Police Command has confirmed awareness of the abduction and is working closely with the Benue State Police Command to locate and rescue the victims. However, efforts to reach the spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, Catherine Anene, were unsuccessful.
This incident marks another tragic chapter in a series of abductions targeting Nigerian Law School students. In 2022, two students from the Agbani campus in Enugu State were kidnapped while shopping at the Eke Agbani market. The recent abduction has sparked widespread concern, highlighting the growing insecurity on Nigeria’s highways. The authorities are working tirelessly to secure the safe return of the students, but the situation remains precarious.
The kidnappers’ threat to execute the students if their demands are not met has raised concerns about the safety of the victims. Fellow students and colleagues are anxiously awaiting their safe return, and the police are working diligently to rescue them. The incident has also sparked an outpouring of concern from the public, with many calling for increased security measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
