Imo Court Targets January Deadline for Trial of Five Suspected Kidnappers Linked to NYSC Abductions

An Imo State High Court sitting in Owerri has called for the speedy conclusion of trials involving five suspected kidnappers, urging prosecution and defence lawyers to cooperate with the court to enable judgments before January 2027.

Presiding judge, Justice Emeka Orafu, made the appeal during proceedings involving three defendants accused of abducting prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and two others facing charges in a separate kidnapping case.

A Department of State Services (DSS) investigative officer, Ikem Emmanuel, testified in the case involving the alleged abduction of prospective corps members. He told the court that investigators relied on intelligence gathering, phone data analysis, record checks, interviews and statements from defendants, victims and witnesses.

Emmanuel said an identification parade was conducted during which victims and witnesses identified the defendants as alleged members of a criminal gang. He also told the court that one defendant, Usman Aliyu, admitted in a statement to participating in the operation and allegedly disclosed that 11 people were involved.

The DSS officer maintained that the defendants’ statements were obtained in the presence of their legal representatives and DSS legal officers. In a related case involving two other defendants, he also gave evidence about the investigation and said their statements were taken in the presence of their lawyers and DSS legal officers.

Following the proceedings, Justice Orafu adjourned the cases to October 27, 28, 29 and 30 for continuation of the hearings. He reiterated that all counsel should work with the court to ensure the cases were determined promptly, with judgments delivered before January 2027.

The five defendants are to remain in DSS custody as the trials continue. The allegations presented in court remain subject to judicial determination, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

The cases follow the abduction of 20 prospective corps members and a civilian by gunmen near Umunoha in Mbaitoli Local Government Area on October 1, 2026. The prospective corps members were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to their assigned NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states.

The victims and the civilian were rescued from the Amakohia-Ubi forest in Owerri West Local Government Area six days later. The DSS subsequently arrested five suspects in intelligence-led operations conducted between October 10 and 14 in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and Aba, Abia State.