Students were just hours away from sitting the most important test of their young lives. Then gunmen took them.
A group of UTME candidates abducted in Benue were seized late on Wednesday evening, 15 April 2026, when armed men ambushed a commercial bus travelling along the Makurdi-Otukpo road in Otukpo Local Government Area.
The attack happened between 7:00 PM and 8:00 PM near the area locally known as “Benue Burnt Bricks” – a corridor long notorious for armed criminality.
Exam Morning Was Hours Away
The passengers were mostly young people heading to Otukpo to sit the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, which was scheduled to begin the following morning, Thursday, 16 April. For many of them, the UTME represents the single gateway to university admission in Nigeria to sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME.
The abduction on the very eve of the examination drew immediate national attention.
How Many Were Taken?
Initial reports put the number of missing passengers as high as 17. The Benue State Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, later confirmed that 14 passengers were abducted.
Since the attack, at least two of the victims have reportedly managed to escape. Authorities have not yet disclosed how many remain in the hands of their captors.
State Bus, Banned Night Journey
The UTME candidates abducted in Benue were travelling aboard a vehicle operated by Benue Links, the state-owned transport company.
In a significant development, the driver of the bus has been arrested. He is currently under interrogation for violating the company’s own policy that prohibits journeys after 6:00 PM. The vehicle departed well past that cut-off.
The breach has opened serious questions about whether safety rules within the state transport operator are being enforced at all.
Governor Condemns Attack, Forces Deploy
Governor Hyacinth Alia described the abduction as a “cowardly act” and assured the public that everything was being done to secure the victims’ release.
Police tactical units, including the Anti-Kidnapping Unit, have since been deployed to search surrounding forests and track the attackers. Operations remain ongoing.
The case of UTME Candidates Abducted in Benue has once again highlighted the dangers facing students traveling across Nigeria’s high-risk corridors.
No Claim of Responsibility
As of the time of this report, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Makurdi-Otukpo axis has, however, witnessed repeated incidents involving armed gangs and kidnap networks that target travellers – particularly those moving after dark. Security analysts and local residents have long flagged the route as one of the most vulnerable in the state.
UTME Candidates Abducted in Benue: A Pattern That Refuses to End
The UTME candidates abducted in Benue are far from the first civilians to fall victim to highway kidnappings in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. The timing – night travel, a vulnerable group, a route with a documented history of attacks – fits a pattern that security authorities have so far been unable to break.
For those young people, what should have been a nerve-wracking but ordinary journey to write an examination has become something far worse.
Their families are still waiting.
