The Imo State Police Command has launched a coordinated search-and-rescue operation after gunmen attacked two commercial buses carrying National Youth Service Corps members and other travellers along the Owerri-Onitsha Road.
The incident occurred around the Umunoha axis of Mbaitoli Local Government Area in the early hours of Thursday, October 1, 2026.
The latest development is that 10 victims have been rescued, while the two buses involved in the incident have been recovered. The police, however, said the exact number of people abducted is still being verified.
Police Public Relations Officer, Henry Okoye, said tactical teams and operational assets had been deployed alongside sister security agencies to locate the remaining victims and arrest the suspected abductors.
The buses were reportedly conveying corps members and other passengers travelling from Ibadan towards destinations including Uyo in Akwa Ibom State and Bende in Abia State.
Earlier reports said armed men intercepted the vehicles, robbed passengers and marched some of them into a nearby bush.
The incident has renewed concerns over security on the Owerri-Onitsha Expressway, where previous kidnapping incidents have also been reported.
ValidViewNetwork can confirm that a man and his daughter were allegedly abducted along the same road about three weeks ago and were reportedly released after a N29 million ransom was paid.
ValidViewNetwork reports that the latest police rescue operation has changed the situation from the initial report of a mass abduction, but the number of victims still missing remains unclear. Security agencies are expected to continue the search while authorities establish the full circumstances of the attack.
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