‘They gave us one month to live’ — Rescued victims recount how gunmen marched them into Kogi forest

• Rescued NYSC member David Ayodele said kidnappers threatened to keep victims in a Kogi forest for one month before killing them.
  

• Chukwuma Goodness Osnachi said she ran into the bush after hearing gunshots but was captured and taken to a mountain.
  

• Security forces rescued 21 victims, including 15 NYSC members, from a kidnappers’ den in Ofu LGA.

A rescued National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member and another survivor have recounted separate accounts of the terrifying ordeal they endured after suspected kidnappers abducted them in Kogi State.

David Ayodele, one of 15 NYSC members rescued alongside six other victims, said the abductors threatened to keep them in the forest for one month before killing them.

Another survivor identified in a rescue video as Chukwuma Goodness Osnachi said she was travelling from Abuja to Abakaliki when gunfire erupted along the highway, forcing her to run into the bush before she was captured.

The 21 victims were rescued on Monday, August 31, from a kidnappers’ den in the forests of Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State following a joint operation involving security agencies and local hunters.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu confirmed the rescue, saying the victims comprised eight males and 13 females.

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Ayodele said he was travelling to Abuja after completing his NYSC orientation programme in Bayelsa State and being relocated.

“Then they opened the door, and they started leading us to the bush while they were shooting… rounds of bullets in the air,” Ayodele said in a video obtained after the rescue.

He alleged that the victims were flogged and kicked as they were marched deeper into the forest. The kidnappers later ordered them to sit in a bushy area and threatened to keep them there for a month before killing them.

“We reached one kind of bushy area… that we would be here for one month, so they would kill all of us,” he recounted. The abductors also allegedly warned that anyone who moved without permission would be shot.

Ayodele said fear prevented the victims from attempting to escape as they were repeatedly moved through the forest.

“So we moved a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot and then, thank God, the Nigerian Army came to meet us,” he said. 

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In a separate video recorded after the rescue, Osnachi gave another account of how she became one of the victims.

“My name is Chukwuma Goodness Osnachi,” she said, explaining that she was travelling from Abuja to Abakaliki when the journey took a terrifying turn after they began hearing gunshots along the highway.

She said she ran into the bush in an attempt to escape but was eventually captured by the attackers.

“So I now run into the bush, they come and capture me. Carry us to that far mountain,” she recounted.

After her rescue, Osnachi expressed gratitude to the security agencies involved in the operation. She said the experience had strengthened her resolve to pray for Nigeria’s security personnel.

“Today, I am praying every morning for Nigeria's security because I am a woman of God,” Osnachi said in the video.

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The Kogi State Police Command said the abduction occurred at about 4:40 p.m. on August 26, when armed men emerged from the bush near the Ogene Zaria/Onicha-Igo Junction in Ofu LGA and blocked two buses. 

The command initially announced the rescue of 11 victims, including the drivers of the two buses. By August 31, however, Commissioner of Police in Kogi State, CP Naziru Bello Kankarofi, said joint security forces had rescued all 21 victims.

The operation involved the Nigerian Army, Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Services (DSS), local vigilantes and hunters. Police said the involvement of local hunters was important because of their knowledge of the terrain. 

Kankarofi said security forces eventually located the kidnappers' camp and engaged them in a gun battle, during which the abductors were overpowered and the victims rescued. 

The Kogi police command said the rescued victims were receiving medical attention and undergoing debriefing. 

It added that one victim sustained a gunshot wound to the right leg, while no fatality was recorded during the operation. The police said efforts were continuing to arrest the fleeing suspects. 

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu also confirmed the rescue, saying the 21 victims comprised eight males and 13 females. He said they were receiving medical attention before being reunited with their families. 

The incident has renewed concerns about the safety of corps members and other travellers using Kogi's highways, particularly forested routes where kidnappers have carried out repeated attacks in recent weeks.

The accounts of the threats and physical abuse in this report are Ayodele's allegations and personal recollection of the captivity; they have not been independently verified in every detail.