18 Passengers Taken Hostage By Gunmen On Route To Bayelsa From Ughelli North

Gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen abducted at least eighteen individuals traveling from Warri to Bayelsa state in a private company bus, marking another distressing incident along the East-West route in Ughelli North local government area of Delta State. The abduction, which took place around 5:00 pm last Tuesday near the Evwreni area, was reported by the transport company’s supervisor.

This occurrence echoes a similar event where nine students, along with a Naval Officer, were reportedly abducted on the eve of Good Friday while returning from school in Calabar, Cross Rivers state. They were subsequently released after 72 hours.

According to a security source within the Delta State Police Command, the transport company supervisor reported that their bus, en route from Warri to Bayelsa, was intercepted along the Ughelli-Patani road near Evwreni, and all passengers were kidnapped and taken to an undisclosed location.

While contact has been established, it remains unclear if ransom demands were made for their release, the source revealed anonymously.

In response to inquiries, SP Edafe Bright, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, stated, “The issue is that the driver did not know where exactly that thing happened because he claimed that there was a kidnap.”

Bright continued, “What we are suspecting is that if there was a kidnap, it might have occurred in Bayelsa and not in Delta because our investigations along that route did not yield any evidence of such an incident.”

He added, “We find it suspicious that kidnappers would selectively abduct passengers and leave others unharmed. As of now, the driver is detained pending further investigation, as his account lacks clarity and contradicts the evidence gathered.”

The uncertainty surrounding the incident underscores the challenges in addressing and verifying cases of kidnapping, particularly along routes prone to such criminal activities.

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