Our abductors killed a man, showed us dead bodies — Ogun student

One of the rescued students of Gateway ICT Polytechnic, Saapade, Ogun State, has recounted how their abductors allegedly killed a man in the forest, showed them dead bodies of victims and threatened to kill them if their families had failed to pay ransom.
The student, whose identity was undisclosed, narrated his experience in a video documentary of the rescue operation released by the Ogun State Police Command on Tuesday.
PUNCH Metro had reported on July 30 that the students were abducted on July 29 at their hostel located off campus in the Ipara area of the state.
Narrating how they were kidnapped, the student noted that the assailants stormed their residence, shooting repeatedly before moving from one apartment to another.
“We started hearing, ‘Lucas, open the door! There are kidnappers!’ So my friend and four others hid inside the toilet at the back,” he recounted.
He said the gunmen eventually entered their apartment and ordered everyone to lie down before accusing the occupants of being internet fraudsters.
“They asked us who our boss was. We said we didn’t have a boss, that all of us are students. They said no, that we were doing Yahoo.
“They said they would take some of us, and if our boss had come, our boss would be able to provide some money to pay us out,” he said.
He said the abductors tied their hands behind their backs and led them into the bush, where they allegedly encountered another man.
“On our way, we met someone inside the bush, a man there. They killed the man. They tied his hands behind his back, they stabbed him, and they killed him. They left him there,” he alleged.
The student said the abductors subsequently threatened the victims with a similar fate if they refused to cooperate.
According to him, they later encountered another abducted victim, identified by his captors as “Biggy”, who had allegedly been kidnapped a day before their abduction.
“They abducted him on Tuesday, so we were abducted on Wednesday. We saw him there,” he said.
He noted that they were taken deep into the bush after being abducted and subjected to beatings, hunger and harsh conditions during their captivity.

He said the abductors moved mostly at night to avoid detection, forcing the victims through forests and across about three rivers before taking them to different hideouts.
According to him, the victims were also warned against speaking or making any attempt to escape, while those who struggled to walk because of injuries sustained during their captivity were allegedly beaten.
The student said the abductors demanded N30m ransom from each victim, but later reduced the amounts for some of them after negotiations with their families.
He recalled that the abductors took the victims to a forest where they were shown bodies, allegedly telling them that they belonged to people whose relatives had failed to pay ransom.
“They took us to a forest, and on getting there, the place was smelly. They told us that these were some people who did not pay the ransom, and they had killed them, and if we cannot pay the ransom, they will kill us and bury us here. So we were begging for our lives,” he added. Police nab suspected kidnapper attempting N1.6m rifle purchase Awujale: Ruling house backs leaders, rejects purported removal 168 solar streetlights stolen on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Longbridge
The student said the group also threatened to bury the victims at the location if their families failed to raise the demanded money.
He said the victims were given little food and water during their captivity, with the abductors at one point giving them cassava flakes, popularly known as garri, to eat.
The student said the abductors also monitored the movement of vehicles and motorcycles, ordering the victims to lie down or move into the bush whenever they noticed people approaching.
He disclosed that the victims were eventually caught in a security operation involving the police and the Department of State Services.
According to him, the abductors attempted to flee with the victims when they came under attack from security operatives, but he persuaded one of his friends not to follow them and instead move towards the direction of the security personnel.
The student said he was shot in the leg when he attempted to move towards what he initially believed was the police.
He said he later pretended to be dead when the abductors returned to check on him, adding that they eventually left him behind.
“I was already getting tired. I was telling myself that I could not survive the night. Then I heard a policeman saying they should check if I was alive. That was when I knew they were the police,” he recounted.
He said he called out to the security personnel and identified himself as a student, after which they rescued him and another victim.

The rescued student expressed appreciation to the police and other security personnel involved in the operation, saying the experience changed his perception of the police.
“I am very grateful. I am happy that I am alive today, even though I have an injury in my leg,” he said.
He also praised the security personnel for venturing deep into the forest to rescue the victims, describing the operation as a demonstration of commitment to protecting lives.
PUNCH Metro reported that the Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, had declared that kidnappers and other criminal elements would have no hiding place in the state following the rescue of the seven victims.
The governor, who addressed journalists at his Oke-Mosan office, Abeokuta, alongside security chiefs and some of the rescued students, said the successful operation underscored his administration’s commitment to protecting lives and property.
Abiodun had said that the students were rescued during a coordinated operation involving the Nigeria Police Force, the Armed Forces, the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Ogun State Security Network Agency (Amotekun Corps), local vigilantes, and hunters.
Following the rescue, the Nigeria Police Force confirmed that three of the suspected kidnappers were killed in a gun duel with security operatives on August 6.
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, had confirmed that following the rescue of the victims, the police anti-kidnapping unit and operatives of the Department of State Security trailed the kidnappers to their hideout.
He had stated that the security team engaged the kidnappers in a gun duel during which three suspects were neutralised while others escaped with gunshot injuries.

Johnson Idowu
Johnson Idowu is a journalist at Punch Newspapers with over four years of experience covering politics, education, metro, and environment. He specializes in producing insightful and well-researched reports that inform and engage readers. Johnson’s work reflects hands-on newsroom experience, editorial insight, and a dedication to accurate, audience-focused journalism.

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