Families of 10 abducted travellers, including Olusoji Adedapo, a newly discharged member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), have made an urgent appeal to security agencies and the Federal Government for assistance following their abduction along the Ijebu-Ode, Ibadan road.
​The incident occurred at approximately 7:00 PM on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, near Ijebu Awa, a boundary community linking Ogun and Oyo states. The abductors have since contacted family members to demand a ransom of N25 million for the victims’ release.
​According to family members, Olusoji Adedapo had completed his NYSC Passing-Out Parade (POP) ceremony in Edo State the previous week and was returning home to Ibadan, Oyo State, aboard a commercial bus alongside a friend and fellow ex-corps member, identified simply as Tunde.
​Adedapo’s cousin, Timilehin, explained that Adedapo had been updating his family on his travel progress throughout the day.
The commercial bus encountered heavy traffic in Benin City, Edo State, delaying their departure from the city until around 3:00 PM. Although passengers urged the driver to halt the trip and resume the following morning due to the late hour, the driver insisted on proceeding.
​As the vehicle passed Ijebu towards Ibadan shortly after 7:00 PM, the driver reportedly diverted off the highway onto a bush path.
​In a recorded voice note, Tunde who managed to escape during the attack, narrated the moment the ambush occurred:
​”As we were travelling, shortly after passing through Ijebu, we faced Ibadan; it was around 7 PM. We just saw that our driver turned, facing into the bush… Before we knew what was happening, suspected herders launched attacks; they were shooting guns repeatedly. Right there, they shot someone, but I just hid inside the bush.”
​Tunde added that the attackers took nine passengers and the driver into the forest, leaving behind discarded mobile phones inside the vehicle.
​Speaking on behalf of the family, Abigeal, sister to Olusoji Adedapo, expressed the family’s anguish and distress over their inability to raise the requested ransom.
​”Please, we are calling on the government, the security operatives, everybody to please help us because they have been in the bush since Tuesday,” Abigeal stated. “We don’t even have the N25 million to raise… Please, we are asking that the government help us. We need our brother back, we need other victims back.”
​Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for the Ogun State Police Command, DSP Oluseyi Babaeyi Ogunnaike, stated that police operatives, alongside local vigilantes, have commenced search and rescue operations in the surrounding forest.
Ogunnaike noted that investigations are actively ongoing to establish the exact circumstances of the attack and safely rescue all held captives.
