The Benue State Police Command and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, have dismissed claims that passengers abducted along the Makurdi-Otukpo Road were students travelling to sit for the 2026 UTME.
The clarification comes after widespread reports linked the April 15 incident to candidates heading for the examination, sparking public concern.
Police spokesperson, DSP Edet Udeme, said the victims were not part of any UTME-bound convoy but were passengers in a commercial vehicle travelling to Makurdi.
“The claim is incorrect, as the victims were not confirmed to be part of any organised UTME-bound student convoy,” she said.
JAMB spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, also refuted the reports, stating that the victims were participants in an ongoing police recruitment exercise who were returning to Otukpo at the time.
He described the claims as misleading and criticised the rush to link the incident to the examination body.
“It is regrettable that, in moments like this, there is a tendency to hastily malign government institutions without proper verification of facts,” he said.
Benjamin added that the structure of the UTME makes it unlikely for candidates who know one another to be assigned to the same centre or travel together.
He called on those who circulated the claims to retract them, stressing that the identity of the victims does not reduce the seriousness of the crime.
“Regardless of their identity or purpose of travel, no Nigerian deserves to be subjected to kidnapping,” he said.
Meanwhile, the police confirmed that seven suspects have been arrested following a joint operation in Amla Forest and surrounding areas.
Some victims have been rescued and are receiving medical attention, while efforts to secure the release of others are ongoing.
The Commissioner of Police assured residents that security agencies remain on the trail of the kidnappers and urged the public to provide useful information.
