Port Harcourt, Rivers State – December 4, 2025 – Five students of Rivers State University (RSU) who were kidnapped in the early hours of Tuesday have been rescued unharmed following a coordinated security operation involving the Rivers State Police Command, other security agencies, and decisive intervention by community leaders.
The rescued students – Prince London, Azubuike Kelechukwu, Elizabeth Aniete, Onyebuchi Precious, and London Sampson – were abducted around 1:00 a.m. on December 3 from their off-campus residences in the Rumuche/Rumuohia axis of Emohua Local Government Area, a semi-rural community along the East-West Road frequently used by students seeking affordable accommodation.
According to the Rivers State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, the victims were moved by their abductors to Rumuodogo 2, a neighbouring community barely five kilometres away, where they were held in a hideout. Acting on credible intelligence provided by community sources, a combined team of police operatives, backed by personnel from sister agencies, stormed the location and secured the release of all five students without paying any ransom and without firing a shot.
“All five students have been rescued unhurt and have been reunited with their families,” SP Iringe-Koko confirmed in a statement issued Wednesday morning. “The operation was intelligence-led and executed with precision, thanks to the timely cooperation of community leaders and vigilant residents.”
Preliminary investigations by the police point strongly to cult-related motives. Sources within the command disclosed that the abduction appeared to be a targeted attack linked to lingering supremacy clashes between rival cult groups operating in the Emohua axis. Community leaders corroborated this, insisting the gunmen were not unknown criminals from outside the area but youths from neighbouring communities.
Speaking anonymously to journalists, the Youth President of Rumuohia Community revealed that within hours of the incident, intelligence gathered by local vigilante groups and concerned residents pinpointed the involvement of youths from Rumuodogo 1 and Rumuodogo 2 Communities. He disclosed that one suspect, a young man from Rumuohia believed to have provided insider information to the abductors, was immediately identified, apprehended by the community, and handed over to the police.
“We didn’t waste time playing the blame game,” the youth leader said. “By 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday, we already knew where the students were being held and who was involved. We marched straight to the Chairman of the Community Development Committee (CDC) in Rumuodogo and gave him until 3:00 p.m. to produce our children. That pressure from the community forced the boys holding them to release the students almost immediately.”
Residents described how the swift community response complemented police efforts. Youths from Rumuohia reportedly mobilised in large numbers, blocking roads leading into Rumuodogo and threatening to storm the area if the students were not released. The standoff, though tense, ended peacefully when the victims were freed around midday on Tuesday and escorted back to safety.
The incident has once again highlighted the perennial challenge of cultism and communal clashes in parts of Rivers State, particularly in student-dominated communities outside Port Harcourt metropolis. Rumuche, Rumuohia, and adjoining villages have in recent years become flashpoints for cult-related abductions, extortion, and violent attacks, largely due to the presence of tertiary institutions and the absence of adequate campus accommodation, forcing thousands of students to live in isolated, poorly secured areas.
The state Police Commissioner, CP Mustapha Mohammed, commended the community for what he described as “responsible and patriotic vigilance,” stressing that the successful rescue underscored the importance of community-police synergy in tackling insecurity. He warned cultists and criminals operating in the state that the command would sustain its aggressive operations until every criminal element is flushed out.
Families of the rescued students expressed profound relief and gratitude. One parent, who spoke on condition of anonymity, thanked both the police and community leaders: “We thought we had lost our children. But God used the youth president, the vigilante, and the police to bring them back to us the same day. We are forever grateful.”
As of Wednesday evening, no arrests directly linked to the abduction had been officially announced, but police sources say several suspects are already in custody and interrogation is ongoing to unravel the full circumstances surrounding the incident.
The rescue comes barely a week after similar concerns were raised over student safety in Rivers State, reinforcing calls by the RSU chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) for the state government and university management to expedite the completion of on-campus hostels and improve security in off-campus communities.
For now, the five students are receiving medical checks and counselling, while the communities of Rumuohia and Rumuodogo begin the delicate process of reconciliation to prevent reprisals that have historically spiralled into prolonged violence.
