The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) has urged Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, and the Commissioner of Police, CP Ikioye Orutugu, to join forces with security agencies in Benue and Taraba states to secure the release of six abducted law students from Anambra.
The victims—students of the Nigerian Law School were reportedly kidnapped by suspected gunmen on Saturday, July 26, while traveling from Onitsha, Anambra State, to resume classes at the Yola campus in Adamawa State.
The school was scheduled to reopen on Monday, July 28, following a court externship break.
A fellow student, Damilare Adenola, confirmed the incident via phone call on Sunday, stating that the students were abducted by armed men during the journey.
He identified some of the missing students as Rev. Ernest Okafor, Ogbuka Fabian, Nwamma Philip, Okechukwu Obadiegwu, Obalem Emmanuel, and Obiorah David.
Intersociety, in a statement signed by its Board Chairman, Nze Emeka Umeagbalasi, described the abductees as young lawyers who had completed their undergraduate law degrees and were currently undergoing the mandatory one-year training at the Nigerian Law School.
The group revealed that the students were seized near the Benue-Taraba boundary, and according to a report by The Punch, their abductors are demanding a ransom of ₦120 million—₦20 million per student.
“We are strongly demanding their immediate and unconditional release,” the statement read. “Governor Soludo must rise to the occasion and work with police authorities and fellow governors in the affected states to ensure the safe return of these future legal practitioners.”
Intersociety warned that Anambra State must not allow the loss of such promising talents, describing the abducted students as “brilliant legal minds with unquantifiable value to the state and nation.”
The group also called on the Nigerian Law School and relevant security agencies to take urgent action in pressuring for the safe rescue of the abducted students.