Gunmen Abduct JAMB Candidates Travelling To Exam Centre

Friday April 17, 2026
www.thenewsdesk.ng

By Idorenyin UMOREN
Private Investigator and Security Evaluator

Gunmen have reportedly abducted 14 passengers, most of them candidates of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, in Benue State.

According to The DailyTrust, the victims were travelling in a commercial bus from Makurdi, the state capital, to Otukpo when they were kidnapped.

The candidates were expected to sit for their examinations on Thursday, April 16, 2026, but the attack occurred between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 15, 2026.

The vehicle, carrying about 16 passengers—largely young men and women—was ambushed by armed attackers along the route.

Sources indicated that only the driver and one passenger escaped.

Confirming the incident in Makurdi, the Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, said the victims were on their way to write their examinations when the attackers struck, DailyTrust reported.

“The victims are young people coming to Otukpo to write JAMB. Security agents have been deployed and efforts are ongoing to rescue them,” Ogiri said.

Attempts to get a response from Benue Links, the state-owned transport company that owns the bus, were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report. Calls and messages to both the spokesperson and the General Manager were not answered.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Udeme Edet, said she had not yet received an official report of the incident.

“I’m just hearing it from you now. I’m going to confirm and get back to you,” she said.

However, the Benue State Commissioner of Police, CP Ifeanyi Enemari, confirmed the development, noting that he was personally leading a rescue operation in Otukpo.

“I’m in Otukpo now. My team and all DPOs are in the bush, and I am heading the operation,” Enemari said.

He explained that the attack occurred after the bus was intercepted by armed men, leading to the abduction of most of the passengers.

“What happened was that a Benue Links bus carrying passengers to Otukpo was stopped and attacked by hoodlums. Fourteen passengers were kidnapped, but one managed to escape,” he said.

The police commissioner added that the bus might have been operating outside its approved hours.

“Benue Links, as a policy, does not usually operate at night. From what we gathered, official operations had closed, but the driver, for reasons we are still investigating, picked up passengers along the road. When he got here, the incident occurred,” he added.

Enemari assured that security operatives are working to secure the release of the abducted passengers.
“We are on the ground to make sure the victims are rescued,” he said.