By John Attah
Two prosecution witnesses have narrated before a court how 20 prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) were abducted while travelling to their orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states.
The witnesses testified on Friday in the ongoing trial of Usman Aliyu, Mohamed Aliyu and Babangida Ali, who are facing charges over the October 1, 2026 incident.
The Department of State Services (DSS) presented the witnesses in suit No. HOU/22C/2026.
Led in evidence by the Principal State Counsel, Mr Ekezie Nwauzor, the second prosecution witness, a commercial motorcyclist, Mr Light Timothy, told the court how the first and second defendants hired him to take them to a location where their colleagues were staying.
Timothy said the two men were carrying a bag, but he did not know its contents until they arrived at a secluded location, where four men emerged from the bush, collected the bag and brought out AK-47 rifles.
He recalled that one of his passengers made a telephone call and spoke in an intonation he believed sounded Hausa or Fulani. The person on the other end reportedly instructed them to take the Umuguma-Okuku road in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State.
The witness said fear gripped him at some point and he considered turning back. He added that he would have been killed for delaying on the road if one of the men had not pleaded on his behalf, allowing him to escape.
The third prosecution witness, Mr Sunday Udoh, a driver with Akwa Ibom Transport Company, told the court that he and another driver, Jeremiah, were conveying NYSC members from Ibadan to their orientation camps.
Udoh said they stopped over in Onitsha and departed at about 5.30am on October 1. While heading towards Owerri, shortly after passing a checkpoint, he noticed two stationary minibuses.
He said he sensed danger and attempted to reverse, but his vehicle hit the one behind it, leaving both vehicles stuck.
According to him, he switched off the vehicle, crossed to the other side of the highway and hid in nearby bushes, from where he watched the incident.
Udoh identified Usman Aliyu as one of the attackers and told the court that the kidnappers took five passengers from his bus and 15 from Jeremiah’s vehicle into the bush.
Following cross-examination of the witnesses by defence counsel, Mr Pachal Ofoma, the presiding judge, Justice Emeka Orafu, adjourned the case until November 3, 2026, for further hearing.
