Remaining abducted Kogi varsity students freed

The Kogi State Government has announced another rescue of eight kidnapped students of Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTECH), Osara in Adavi Local Government Area.

Bandits had invaded the institution on May 9 and abducted some of the students after shooting sporadically into the air.

Earlier, 21 of the abducted students were rescued, while two were confirmed killed by the abductors.

The state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Femi Fanwo, disclosed in a statement on Sunday that the eight rescued students were the last batch of the victims held by the kidnappers.

According to Fanwo, the rescue of the abducted students was made possible by the cooperation and support of the Kwara State Government in joint security operations which included hunters and vigilantes.

The state government also expressed profound gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and all the heads of security operatives for their various roles that ensured the release of the remaining abducted students.

“Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo also expresses immense gratitude to his Kwara State counterpart, Governor AbdulRahmam AbdulRazak for his personal commitment, cooperation and support towards the success of the operation that led to the rescue of the remaining kidnapped students.

“We also commend the Kogi State Command of all the security agencies: police, DSS, NSCDC. Our local hunters are also highly appreciated for their efforts towards this feat,” the statement read.

The state police command’s Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Williams Aya, was contacted for confirmation, but had not responded at the time of filing this report.