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"All Victims Rescued Alive": Edo Police Storm Forests, Free Nine Abductees After GUO Bus Attack and Imiegba Kidnappings
The Edo State Police Command has pulled off a remarkable double rescue, freeing all nine hostages taken in two separate kidnapping incidents that had spread fear along the Benin–Lagos Expressway and deep into the forests of Edo North. In a statement that brought relief to anxious families and commuters alike, police spokesperson ASP Eno Ikoedem confirmed on Saturday, April 25, 2026, that all five passengers abducted during the deadly April 18 ambush on a GUO Transport bus had been rescued alive, along with four other victims held captive in the Imiegba forest in Agenebode, Etsako East Local Government Area.
"The Edo State Police Command is pleased to inform the general public that all victims abducted during the recent kidnapping incident along the Benin–Lagos Expressway have been successfully rescued alive," the statement read, adding that "they have since received medical evaluation and treatment, and reunited with their families."
The successful operation is being credited to Commissioner of Police Monday Agbonika, who ordered what the command described as an "immediate and massive deployment of tactical teams, intelligence assets, aerial surveillance, and other operational resources" to the affected corridor. It represents the largest single rescue operation conducted by the Edo Command in 2026 and offers a rare moment of triumph in a state that, like much of Nigeria, has been grappling with a surge in highway abductions.
The GUO Bus Attack: How It Unfolded
The chain of events began at approximately 6:00 p.m. on Friday, April 18, 2026, when a GUO Transport Company bus with registration number FA 280 YJ, travelling from Lagos towards the eastern part of the country, was ambushed by armed men along the Iguobazuwa axis of the Ore–Benin Expressway. The attackers opened fire on the vehicle, killing the driver instantly. A female passenger who suffered gunshot wounds was rescued by responding operatives and rushed to hospital, where she received treatment. Three other passengers were marched into the surrounding forest by the gunmen.
Commissioner Agbonika immediately ordered an escalation of rescue efforts. "All divisions along the Ore–Benin axis and boundary forests have been directed to embark on an intensive search and rescue mission, led by their respective Area Commanders," Ikoedem stated. The command deployed operatives from its Anti-Kidnapping Unit to reinforce ongoing operations, working in collaboration with local hunters and vigilante groups to comb the forests for the victims and suspects.
What followed was a week-long, multi-agency manhunt involving sustained bush-combing operations, aerial surveillance, and strategic domination of the area. The pressure on the kidnappers was unrelenting. "The sustained rescue efforts, coordinated bush-combing operations, and strategic domination of the area exerted pressure on the kidnappers, ultimately leading to the safe rescue of all victims," the command stated.
The Imiegba Forest Rescue: Four More Freed
Even as the main rescue operation was underway along the Benin–Lagos corridor, the command was simultaneously tracking a separate set of abductees. Four residents of the Imeakabu/Itsukwi communities had been kidnapped earlier in April and held in captivity within the dense Imiegba forest in Agenebode, Etsako East Local Government Area. The police successfully located and freed them, bringing the total number of rescued victims to nine.
"In a related development, the Command also successfully rescued four other kidnapped victims who were abducted earlier this month and held in captivity within the Imiegba forest in Agenebode. They have likewise received medical attention and are safe, making a total of nine kidnapped victims rescued," the command stated.
The Imiegba rescue is significant because it targeted a different typology of kidnapping — community-based abductions in Edo North, far from the highway corridor. It demonstrates that the command's operational reach extends beyond reactive responses to highway attacks and into proactive, intelligence-driven interventions in rural kidnapping hotspots.
Security Reinforcement: A Permanent Deployment
Commissioner Agbonika has moved beyond the immediate rescue to address the underlying vulnerability of the corridor. "The Commissioner of Police in the State, Monday Agbonika, has reassured the public, particularly commuters and residents, that security deployment along the Benin–Lagos Expressway and adjoining communities has been significantly strengthened," the command stated. "He added that tactical, intelligence, and operational assets have been fully activated across the axis, assuring that deployment will remain in place until the route is completely safe and secure for all road users."
The CP's language — "significantly strengthened" and "fully activated" — departs from the routine assurances that often follow such incidents. It signals a recognition that the Benin–Lagos Expressway, a vital economic artery connecting the South-West to the South-East and South-South, has become a hunting ground for kidnappers and that piecemeal responses are no longer sufficient.
The command also confirmed that efforts to apprehend the perpetrators are ongoing. "We are confident that all those involved will be tracked down and brought to justice in the shortest possible time," the statement said.
A Broader Pattern: Kidnapping on Nigeria's Highways
The GUO bus attack and the Imiegba abductions are not isolated incidents but part of a grim national pattern. In the same week, police in neighbouring Ondo State rescued a 13-year-old girl from abductors. Just days after the Edo rescue, the command separately foiled a ₦30 million ransom plot and freed a 70-year-old farmer, Pa Jonah Owobu, who had been kidnapped from his farm in Uromi, Edo Central.
Across Nigeria, highway kidnapping has become one of the most visible and terrifying manifestations of the country's security crisis. The Benin–Ore–Lagos corridor, in particular, has gained notoriety, with multiple incidents recorded in 2025 and 2026. The modus operandi is increasingly familiar: gunmen ambush commercial buses, kill or wound the driver to immobilise the vehicle, and march passengers into the forest to negotiate ransoms. The Edo Command's use of aerial surveillance and intelligence assets in this operation suggests a tactical evolution aimed at disrupting this cycle.
A Victory, But the War Continues
The rescue of nine kidnap victims in Edo State is an unambiguous operational success. It has returned sons and daughters to their families, restored a measure of confidence in the police, and demonstrated that sustained, coordinated pressure on kidnappers can yield results. But it does not erase the memory of the GUO driver who was shot dead at the wheel, nor the terror experienced by passengers who watched him die before being marched into the bush. As Commissioner Agbonika's reinforced deployments take hold along the Benin–Lagos Expressway, the test will be whether this operation marks a turning point or merely a temporary reprieve on one of Nigeria's most dangerous roads.
Stay tuned to Unuevbo TV for more in‑depth reporting on crime, enforcement, and community safety across Edo State.
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