The Managing Director of Beacon Security and Innovations, Dr Kabir Adamu, in an interview on Arise News on Monday, has warned that the police statement on the abduction of NYSC members may have given the kidnappers a heads-up on ongoing security operations.
Recall that on October 1, 2026, gunmen abducted prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members travelling along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State.
The victims were travelling in two commercial buses from Ibadan, Oyo State, to NYSC orientation camps in Akwa Ibom and Abia states when the vehicles were intercepted near Umunoha community in Mbaitoli Local Government Area at about 6:30 A.M.
The Imo State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Okoye Henry, said the swift intervention of police operatives and other security personnel led to the recovery of the two buses and the rescue of 10 victims, while the exact number of those still in captivity was being verified.
The Imo State Commissioner of Police, Audu Garba Bosso, later said security forces had tracked the abductors to a hideout in the bush and used drones to pinpoint the location. However, he said the operation was delayed after intelligence indicated that the camp had been mined with improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
Commenting on the situation, Adamu expressed concern that details released by the police could alert the abductors to the fact that security agencies had located their hideout and were planning a rescue operation.
“For one of the few times in my observance of the security situation in the country, I have seen the Commissioner of Police give a little bit too much in the statement he made. He identified the location where they are being held, according to him, and he also said that he believes the location has been rigged with IEDs. I am hoping that is a strategy, because my worry is he has given a little bit too much. The bad guys are listening to the news just like we are, and if they hear that, it gives them a heads-up.
“He went ahead to say this is what they are going to do, talking about using heavy vehicles. I think that is a little bit too much, so I am hoping that is a strategy.”
Adamu called for greater intelligence fusion among security agencies, urging them to combine information and coordinate their operational efforts to secure the safe rescue of the abducted corps members.
“I know that, given what has happened in Oyo State when the university students were abducted, we saw intelligence fusion where the entire security apparatus worked together, and the result was that the victims were either rescued or released—we don’t really know what the truth was. I am hoping that is what will happen in this instance: they will work together with a fusion of intelligence, and the operational components will also use that intelligence.”
He also urged residents in the affected communities to support security agencies by providing timely information that could help locate the abductors and secure the victims’ safe release.
“The residents of the affected locations should also come out and support our security sector organizations with the information that they need. These guys are not ghosts; they are embedded among us. Someone would have seen something, or someone would have heard something that would be valuable and useful to security organizations. These are innocent children, and I don’t want them to be subjected to whatever political agendas or conspiracy theories are out there.
“This is not the time for it. What is important is that they should be rescued alive, and then the necessary investigations should be conducted to find out what went wrong, who was responsible, and then appropriate penalties should be implemented,” he said.
On the broader safety concerns surrounding the NYSC scheme, Adamu said the government must assure parents and families that corps members can complete their mandatory 12-month service safely, stressing that their security is tied to the wider challenge of protecting Nigerians and ensuring safe movement across the country.
“The fact that the National Youth Service Corps is an institutionalized program within our government processes, every graduate is required to go through that process. But sadly, repeatedly, corps members are being targeted, either by kidnappers or other criminal elements within the country.
“I think the challenge for the government right now is to convince not just parents, but also the loved ones of anyone going for the National Youth Service Corps, that he or she will be safe throughout the 12 months in which that person is involved in that scheme. Let us not forget that the NYSC program is embedded within the Nigerian ecosystem, as it were. So, whatever would happen to those corps members is not necessarily going to be different from what would happen to ordinary Nigerians.
“I think the emphasis should be on public security, protection, and ensuring, for instance, that commuters’ movement from point A to point B is safe.”
Speaking on the ransom demand, Adamu said the amount had dropped from about ₦950 million to ₦100 million, describing kidnapping for ransom as an organised industry involving abductors, informants and other facilitators.
He warned that the ability of kidnappers to access and move such large sums of money exposes a major structural gap that authorities must urgently address.
“It is clear to everybody observing the security situation in Nigeria that we are dealing with an industry that is engaged in kidnap-for-ransom. The actors are not alone; they have informants and people supporting them. For me, the greatest concern is their ability to move money.
“If we start with the almost 1 billion Naira they had earlier demanded—I think about 950 million Naira—now down to 100 million Naira, this is not money that you and I can just go to a bank to collect. So, for them to be able to demand 100 million Naira, and from previous incidents we have monitored, they are usually able to get and spend that money, that is a huge structural gap that we need to block.”
The security expert also pointed to the ransom negotiations as a potential source of intelligence, noting that the kidnappers’ contact with families or negotiators could help security agencies track the network and strengthen the rescue effort.
“Let’s not forget we have a cashless policy in place that should have prevented that, but sadly, it has not. By virtue of the platform that I lead, I know that even mainstream banks, unfortunately, are guilty sometimes of allowing it—I don’t want to say complicit, but they allow it. FinTechs are even more guilty, unfortunately, of allowing the collection of this type of ransom. That is number one.
“The second point is that it means they are in contact with either family members or someone negotiating with them for the release. That is huge intelligence that can support whatever the security sector is doing.
“The third point is their ability to communicate. I want to think they are communicating through the GSM network, most likely, because in previous instances that was the case. That is also another platform, channel, or pathway for intelligence that would allow intervention.
“I think we have gotten a lot that we could use, either for making sure these corps members are released safely, or for subsequent investigations to ensure consequences for the perpetrators.”
Addressing the need for broader security reforms, Dr Adamu said Nigeria has access to security technology but lacks a comprehensive and integrated security system, stressing the need to bridge gaps in identity management, intelligence sharing and the effective monitoring of both physical and cyberspace.
“To the best of my knowledge, I think we have technology, but is it comprehensive? Unfortunately, no. For the simple reason that Nigeria is yet to have ownership of our cyberspace. Part of the challenge is the absence of an identity system. In today’s world, physical space and cyberspace have converged.
“In modern-day security, it is a convergence of the physical and the cyber. Have we reached the point in Nigeria where that convergence has happened, where we have ownership of both physical and cyberspace? No. So, yes, we have technology, but not comprehensively. Do we have a full identity system both in cyberspace and in the physical space? No.
“In cyberspace, how many people are currently using the platform anonymously? It is huge, and those are the gaps we need to close to get comprehensive public security.
” f we have intelligence fusion, we can identify the groups capable of carrying out what happened in Imo State. So, there are positives, but comprehensively, we are not there yet.”
Highlighting the need for proactive security measures, Adamu called for enhanced surveillance through a combination of human intelligence, technology and security systems to identify threats early and deploy measures to prevent attacks.
“I think it is enhanced surveillance. Surveillance can come in different forms in security: human intelligence, technology, and systems. I am hoping security agencies deploy these three components to enhance surveillance.
“It simply comes down to combining human intelligence with technology and systems to allow comprehensive surveillance of threat actors, and then deploying protection measures to either prevent or neutralize them.”
Addressing calls for the NYSC to be scrapped, Adamu said the scheme still has a place but should be modernised, with stronger security awareness for corps members before, during and after their service.
He suggested using virtual reality and online platforms to provide corps members with security awareness before they travel, while also reviewing safety measures around their movement and accommodation during the service year.
“I think the NYSC has its place. Should it be modernized? Absolutely. I support modernizing it, and I know the government put forward some elements of modernization a couple of months ago.
“As we move forward and attempt to enhance protection for the average Nigerian, the NYSC should be afforded that same level of protection.
“I have some recommendations for the NYSC itself. In today’s world, you don’t have to wait until corps members gather in a camp before engaging them in security awareness. VR is an option, and you can also upload information on your website. Students engage a lot with virtual platforms. That way, before they even step out, awareness is established.
“There is a lot the NYSC scheme can do to conduct awareness before, during, and after participation in the program. Beyond that, protection must be for the generality of Nigerians, and NYSC corps members will benefit from that rather than singling them out for special protection.”
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