A Nigerian woman has cried out for help after her sister, a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, was among corps members reportedly abducted by gunmen while travelling from Bayelsa State towards Abuja.
The corps members had just completed their mandatory three-week orientation programme at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State when they were attacked along the Ofu/Itobe-Onicha-Igo axis in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
The incident occurred on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, as the corps members travelled towards Abuja before proceeding to their respective places of primary assignment.
The woman’s appeal was contained in a video shared online in which she explained that her sister had completed the NYSC orientation programme in Bayelsa and had been posted to Niger State for her Place of Primary Assignment.
She said her sister planned to spend the night in Abuja before travelling to Niger State the following day to resume her service.
“My sister went to Bayelsa for her three weeks camp, after the camp she was posted to Niger State. On her way coming back from Bayelsa to Abuja, she was coming back to spend the day in Abuja, so the next day she will go to Niger State to do her PPA.”
According to reports, the attackers intercepted vehicles carrying the corps members along the Kogi route and took several passengers into the bush.
The initial reports indicated that 15 NYSC members were among those abducted after the gunmen attacked two vehicles travelling through the area.
The relative alleged in her video that the driver of the vehicle carrying her sister was killed during the attack, while the corps members were taken into the bush.
She appealed to the Federal Government, NYSC, security agencies and Nigerians to intervene and help secure the victims’ safe release.
“I don’t want to lose my sister. She only went to serve her country. I have reached out to NYSC, they keep telling us that the Air Force are working. Please, Nigerians help us.”
The situation, however, changed after security agencies launched a rescue operation.
The Kogi State Police Command confirmed that armed men had attacked vehicles along the Aloma-Egane Expressway in Ofu Local Government Area and said a joint security team was immediately deployed after receiving a distress call.
Police said the operation led to the rescue of 11 abducted victims, including the drivers of the two buses involved in the attack. Preliminary debriefing showed that most of the rescued victims were NYSC members travelling from Bayelsa State to Abuja.
Two abandoned vehicles, including a Peace Mass Transit white Hummer bus and a yellow 18-seater bus, were recovered at the scene before security personnel launched a coordinated operation in the surrounding forest.
The rescued victims were subsequently debriefed and allowed to continue their journeys after the necessary procedures were completed.
The police said the search operation remains ongoing in the surrounding forest, with security personnel working to locate any remaining victims and apprehend the attackers.
The abduction has sparked renewed concern over the safety of corps members travelling between states after completing their orientation programmes.
The incident has also placed renewed attention on the security of major highways used by young Nigerians travelling to their Places of Primary Assignment after completing NYSC orientation.
While 11 victims have now been rescued, authorities have not confirmed that everyone initially reported missing has been accounted for.
The police have assured the public that available operational and intelligence resources are being deployed to secure the area and facilitate the rescue of any remaining abductees.
The family members of those still unaccounted for are continuing to await further information from security agencies.
Fellow Nigerians, I urgently appeal for your help. My sister, a serving NYSC corps member, has been kidnapped along with other corps members.
___A Nigerian woman has cried out for help after her sister and other corps members were reportedly kidnapped yesterday.… pic.twitter.com/tb416qowwX
— Big Sman.🍥 (@MR__sulaiman2) August 28, 2026
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