Three students abducted from Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University (JOSTUM), formerly the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, in Benue State, have regained their freedom after spending a week in captivity.
The students, who were kidnapped on February 25, 2025, while returning from a night study session on campus, were released on the evening of Wednesday, March 3, according to multiple sources.
Shedrach Elum, spokesperson for the JOSTUM Students’ Union, confirmed their return, stating, “I have been reliably informed that [they] are back safely.”
In a video seen on Thursday, one of the freed students expressed relief, saying, “We survived…I am back. I am traumatized.”
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Following their abduction, the university management ordered a one-week mid-semester break to address security concerns. This directive was contained in an internal memo titled “Security Situation on Campus”, issued a day after the incident and signed by the Registrar, Dr. John David.
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, had earlier called for intensified efforts to secure the students’ release.
Details of how they regained their freedom have not yet been disclosed.
