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From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
Armed bandits have again abducted six travellers along the Makurdi–Naka road in the Gwer West Local Government Area of Benue State.
This was barely one week after 23 persons, including nine worshippers, were abducted in separate incidents in the Ado and Okpokwu LGAs of the state.
The latest incident, sources said, happened in the early hours of Tuesday, 17 February 2026, at Kula village, about a 20-minute drive to Makurdi, the state capital.
A relative of one of the victims, who did not want to be named for fear of attacks, said the victims left Ilorin en route to Makurdi on Monday. “And when it was night, they spent the night in Ankpa, Kogi State, due to insecurity along the road,” he said.
He added, “They were seven in the vehicle and left Ankpa early hours of today (Tuesday), but their vehicle was intercepted at Kula village, about a 20-minute drive to Makurdi.
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“One of the passengers escaped while the six others, three males and three females, were whisked away by the kidnappers.”
The source said the suspected kidnappers have demanded N100 million ransom for the release of the six victims.
Confirming the incident, Chairman of Gwer West Local Government, Victor Omnin, said the incident happened in the early hours of Tuesday along the Naka–Makurdi road.
The chairman said, “It’s true; I have confirmed the abduction of the people. I was told that the incident happened around 5 am this morning; they said the people were going in a convoy before they ran into bandits who abducted some of them.
“The incident happened close to Makurdi, but along Naka/Makurdi road. I don’t have the number of people abducted.”
The state command spokesperson, DSP Udeme Edet, said the command was yet to receive the report.
