Eight of the passengers rescued from last Wednesday’s Benue Links bus abduction have been identified as candidates of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
According to Vanguard, the victims were among those kidnapped while travelling to Otukpo to sit for the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.
The abducted passengers, who were taken on April 15, 2026, regained their freedom early Sunday after spending about three days in captivity.
Among the rescued victims were three female candidates.
The victims were later brought to the Benue State Government House in Makurdi by the Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari.
They were accompanied by their parents and guardians for an official reception by Governor Hyacinth Alia.
The victims appeared visibly exhausted following their ordeal, while documentation processes were ongoing ahead of their formal reception.
The incident occurred when gunmen intercepted a state-owned Benue Links vehicle conveying passengers on Wednesday night.
The attackers reportedly whisked away several travellers, including young men and women heading to write the UTME in Otukpo.
The identification of some victims as UTME candidates comes amid earlier claims by authorities that none of the abducted passengers was examination candidates.
