A Department of State Services (DSS) operative, Ikechukwu Emmanuel, has detailed before an Imo State High Court how three suspects were identified and apprehended in connection with the abduction of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members traveling to orientation camps.
Testifying before Justice Emeka Orafu, the lead investigator revealed how victims and a bus driver positively identified the defendants during a structured identification parade.
The Abduction and Intelligence Tracking
The trial, registered under suit number HOU/22C/2026, involves three defendants: Usman Aliyu (alias Chonge), Babangida Aliyu, and Mohamed Ali (alias Smallie Pepper). They are facing a three-count charge bordering on criminal conspiracy, hostage-taking, and unlawful possession of firearms.
According to the DSS operative, the incident occurred at approximately 6:30 AM on October 1, 2026. The 20 prospective corps members were transiting in two buses from Ibadan to NYSC orientation camps located in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when armed men wielding AK-47 rifles waylaid the vehicles and marched all passengers into the bush.
“Security agencies in Imo State, combining human intelligence and technical tracking, monitored the movement of the kidnappers. The victims were eventually freed following ransom negotiations, while tactical teams pressed on with manhunts,” the witness testified.
Intelligence reports subsequently trailed the suspects to hideouts in Rivers and Abia states, leading to their arrest between October 10 and 14, 2026.
Identification Parade and Court Proceedings
During the hearing led by the Imo State Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr. Martins Udolwu, the witness explained that the three defendants were placed alongside 10 other individuals during an official identification parade. The abducted prospective corps members and one of the commercial bus drivers successfully picked out the suspects.
Furthermore, the operative noted that during interrogation, Usman Aliyu confessed that an 11-man criminal syndicate participated in the coordinated highway abduction.
The defence team—comprising Mr. Nnaemeka S.C. Adipo and Mr. Paschal Ofoma—represented the accused. Justice Emeka Orafu adjourned the trial to October 27, 28, and 29, 2026, for continuation, admonishing the defence to be fully prepared for cross-examination to ensure expedited proceedings.
