Rescued JAMB Candidate Recounts Brutal Kidnap Along Makurdi–Otukpo Highway as Armed Gang Demanded ₦10m Ransom

A rescued candidate of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Agatha Buter, has shared a harrowing account of her abduction during a violent attack on a Benue Links bus along the Makurdi–Otukpo highway.

Agatha was among passengers seized last Wednesday while travelling from Makurdi to Otukpo in an 18-seater bus. Eight of those abducted were candidates heading to sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Otukpo.

The victims were later released and taken to the Benue State Government House, where they were received by Governor Hyacinth Alia.

Recounting her ordeal, Agatha said the kidnappers used extreme intimidation and violence to force compliance from the victims and their families.

“They threatened us with guns and bullets and beat us with cutlasses to force our parents to raise the ransom of ₦10 million they demanded,” she said.

She explained that male passengers were subjected to harsher treatment during the captivity, describing repeated assaults aimed at pressuring families into paying ransom.

“The boys among us suffered the most. They were beaten repeatedly with cutlasses because the kidnappers were pushing for the ransom,” she added.

Agatha further alleged that the attackers operated from a forest-based hideout and were heavily armed. She described the conditions in captivity as harsh and degrading.

According to her, the victims were given minimal food, often consisting of gari mixed with salt, and occasionally mangoes. On some days, she said they had no food at all and were forced to drink unsafe water.

“We were badly fed. On the third day, there was no food and we had to drink unsafe water,” she said.

She described the experience as deeply traumatic, saying the fear and uncertainty left lasting emotional scars on all the victims.

Agatha expressed gratitude to security agencies and the Benue State Government for their efforts in securing their release, noting that their intervention played a key role in ending their ordeal.

The incident has once again highlighted rising insecurity along major highways in parts of north-central Nigeria, where kidnapping for ransom has become increasingly common.