By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Aminat Lawal, the sister of the abducted National Youth Service Corps member, Rofiat Lawal, who was kidnapped along the Benin-Ore Expressway on Tuesday, has disclosed that her sister was handed over to the abductors who were suspected Fulanis by the driver conveying them.

Aminat disclosed this in an exclusive interview with PUNCH Metro on Thursday.

PUNCH Metro reports that Rofiat was abducted by yet-to-be-identified kidnappers while returning to her Place of Primary Assignment in Oyo State.

A friend of the victim identified as Agbakwara, who raised the alarm about Rofiat’s kidnap in a post on Facebook on Wednesday, noted that the abductors were demanding the sum of N20m for her release.

Agbakwara wrote, “My close friend, Lawal Rofiat Kofoworola, was kidnapped on her way from Benin to Ibadan to resume her PPA in Ogbomosho. She managed to call on Thursday and told me she was on an Ore-bound bus when she was taken.

“This is someone who has struggled all her life, supporting herself through university by working at the Dufil company in Benin. Now, kidnappers are demanding N20 million, and we don’t know what to do. Her parents are less privileged and can’t afford this.

“I have reported to the NYSC Secretariat in Ibadan and dropped her call-up number, but there has been no response. We are exhausted and desperate for help.”

Speaking with our correspondent, Aminat disclosed that her sister narrated that the driver conveying them from Benin stopped at Ore where the kidnappers came out from a nearby bush and took them while the driver zoomed off.

She narrated that when the kidnappers contacted them, they demanded N25m ransom for her release, which they pleaded they could not pay, but after several back and forth, they lowered the demand to N5m.

Aminat said, “She contacted us on Tuesday to tell us that she was kidnapped and she said that the driver of the car she boarded was the one who dropped them at the spot where she was kidnapped alongside other passengers.

“When we spoke with the kidnappers, they asked us to bring N25m and we told them that we did not have such money. She is the one who sponsored herself in school. They have reduced the ransom to N5m.”

Meanwhile, the family had resorted to crowdfunding to raise the ransom as requested by the abductors.

In a follow-up conversation with Agbakwara, on Thursday, he noted that the family had resorted to crowdfunding to raise the ransom demanded by the abductors while corroborating the claim that the abducted corper was handed over to her abductors by the driver.

“This evening, the kidnappers allowed my friend and the other victims to call their families. She told me in tears that they were handed over to the Fulani kidnappers after the vehicle they were in dropped them off and drove away. They are all female and have been suffering without food since they were taken.

“The kidnappers are demanding N20m, but she begged that we help raise any amount at all to begin negotiations. She has already spent two days in captivity, and we don’t know what will happen next. We are scared and desperate for help.

Please, Nigerians, any amount you can donate will go a long way. We can’t wait any longer. Let’s come together and help bring her back safely,” Agbakwara said.

The Oyo State NYSC Coordinator, Odoba Abel Oche, who confirmed the incident in a telephone conversation with our correspondent earlier on Thursday, noted that the victim had left Oyo State for Edo State without notifying the state’s NYSC leadership.

He stressed that security operatives had been alerted to the situation for necessary action while saying that he was not aware if any ransom had been requested by the abductors.

“Her parents reported the incident to us yesterday. We were not aware of the incident before her parents reported it.

“We have contacted the national headquarters, the Ondo and Edo NYSC and we have also alerted security agencies for necessary action. I am not aware if the kidnappers have reached out to demand ransom.

“She went home to Benin without informing the NYSC authority against the instruction of the NYSC. The NYSC has continued to emphasise to corps members the need to always notify the authorities before they travel and to also avoid night travels,” Oche said.

Efforts to get the reaction of the Ondo Police Public Relations Office, Odunlami, proved abortive as she had yet to respond to calls made to her line as at the time of filing this report.

There are growing concerns over the renewed surge in kidnapping which has left no fewer than five other persons captive in the last two weeks.

On February 17, some gunmen kidnapped the National President of the Afenifere Youth Council, Eniola Ojajuni, in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

Similarly, four female students of the Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University, Makurdi, Benue State were abducted on the university’s campus by yet-to-be-identified gunmen on Tuesday.

PUNCH Metro reported in July 2024 that some abducted corps members from Ondo State said the family of each of the victims paid a sum of N1 million before they were set free.

The five victims, who include four corps members and one artisan, were kidnapped by the bandits at about 11 pm at Omi Alafa Village in Ifon, Ose Local Government Area, and dragged the victims into the forest.

The corps members were said to be going back home after the three-week National Youth Service Corps Orientation camp in Enugu and Abia States. It was gathered that the driver and one passenger sitting in front of the vehicle were shot dead by the bandits

PUNCH