Gunmen Abduct Mourners Escorting FRSC Officer’s Remains, Demand ₦50m Ransom

• Suspected kidnappers attack funeral convoy along Kogi highway.

• Abductors reportedly abandon corpse of late FRSC Deputy Corps Commander after the attack.

• Victims still in captivity as gunmen demand ₦50 million for their release.

Several mourners travelling with the remains of a late Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officer for burial have been abducted by suspected gunmen in Kogi State, with the kidnappers reportedly demanding a ₦50 million ransom.

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The victims were accompanying the body of Deputy Corps Commander Augustine O. Ikwue, popularly known as “Etume Zero,” to his hometown in Otukpo, Benue State, when their convoy came under attack along the Ososo-Ajaokuta road.

The attackers reportedly intercepted the funeral procession, forced the mourners into the surrounding bush and initially took away the deceased officer’s corpse alongside the abducted travellers.

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However, the body was later recovered near Ejule after it was allegedly abandoned by the kidnappers, while those kidnapped remain in captivity.

A citizen journalist and activist, Meddy Olotu, who disclosed the incident, described the development as disturbing, saying it reflects the worsening insecurity across the country.

He appealed to security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue the victims and ensure those responsible for the attack are arrested and prosecuted.

The late FRSC Deputy Corps Commander was scheduled to be buried in his hometown, Upu community in Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State, before the funeral was disrupted by the attack.

As of the time of filing this report, security authorities had yet to issue an official statement on the incident.