The Benue State police command has rescued 13 kidnapped passengers travelling to Abuja along the Otukpo–Adoka road.

Orchia Peter Aondongu, the command’s spokesman, said in a statement on Friday that the victims were kidnapped the previous Friday while travelling from Enugu to Abuja.

He stated that the command has launched efforts to arrest the suspects connected to the kidnapping.

“The rescue followed sustained search and rescue operations by operatives of the Command in collaboration with local security personnel,” he said.

Mr Aondongu explained that after about five days of intense and relentless search and rescue operations, the victims were rescued on Thursday at about 2:00 p.m.

“Acting on credible intelligence, the operatives embarked on a night operation which culminated in the successful rescue of the victims at about 0200hrs on 20 August 2026 at Amla-Cho Forest, Otukpo Local Government Area, where the operatives encountered the kidnappers and the victims,” he said.

The spokesman explained that the suspects fled under cover of darkness, and the victims were successfully rescued unhurt.

“It is also noteworthy that on 16 August 2026 at about 1800hrs, while continuing with the search and rescue operations, operatives engaged the kidnappers in a fierce gun battle, during which one of the suspects was neutralised. An AK-47 rifle and five rounds of live ammunition were recovered from the scene,” he added.

He further explained that the rescued victims were taken to a medical facility for treatment and then transported to their respective destinations by chartered bus.

“While the initial manifest indicated that nine victims remained to be rescued following the earlier rescue of five victims, subsequent verification established that four additional passengers had not been captured on the manifest, bringing the number of victims rescued during the latest operation to thirteen,” Mr Aondongu stated.

He added that the command is currently intensifying efforts to track down and apprehend the fleeing suspects through sustained intelligence-led operations.