By Ekani Olikita
A disturbing wave of mass kidnappings has swept through Benue South Senatorial District. Intelligence sources confirmed the emergence of organized kidnapper camps within forests bordering Otukpo, Ado, Okpokwu, Ogbadibo, Ohimini, Apa, and Agatu LGAs.
The Region and Rising Threat
Benue South, made up of 9 Local Government Areas (counties) and predominantly inhabited by the Idoma people (the 2nd largest ethnic in Benue State who are 98% Christians, mostly Catholics), has witnessed dozens of abductions in the last ten months along major highways — including Otukpo–Enugu, Otukpo–Aliade, Ugbokolo–Okpoga, and Otukpo–Adoka–Agatu roads.
Notable incidents include:
Abduction of 20 Catholic medical students (August 2024).
Kidnap of 14 passengers after killing a Benue Links driver (April 3, 2025).
Kidnap of a Microfinance Bank manager and wife in Orokam (August 2025).
Mass Hostage Camps Identified
Local vigilantes confirmed hostage camps at:
Amla Forest (Otukpo) bordering Gwer-West, Efugegwanokwu Forest (Otukpo–Ohimini–Adoka axis), Enimado Forest in Orokam, Ogbadibo County, Ugbokolo–Okpoga Forest, Apa–Agila Forest (Ado), Onahen Forest (Agatu), and Adoka/Apa/Ankpa Forest (Apa).
These are reportedly run by Fulani Ethnic Militia (FEM) and local collaborators who have turned the region into a hub for ransom kidnapping and displacement.
TruthNigeria reported extensively during a 9-part series on the hostage camp located in the Rijana Forest south of Kaduna City. To read more, see Inside Rijana: Nigeria’s Forest of Hostages, Emaciated Christian Hostages Survive 4 Months of Torture at Hands of Islamist Terrorists, and Authorities Stonewall Queries as Human Rights Experts Receive Evidence.
Who are the Kidnappers?
The Hostage Takers are 99% Muslim Fulani Ethnic Militia and their victims are Christian passengers plying the dangerous roads.
Arrested suspects — Yusuf Mohammed (Orokam), along with Ibrahim Saleh, Hashimu Ibrahim, and Abu Umoru (Otukpo) — were all identified as Fulani.
Studies by Organization for Religion Freedom in Africa (ORFA) link Fulani Ethnic Militia to over 55,000 deaths in Nigeria in four years.
Security Confirmation
Pablo Williams Agada, Commander of Benue Civil Protection Guards in charge of Benue South, confirmed that “some Local Government Areas (county) in Benue South are being used as kidnapper safe havens,” listing the same forests and noting Ogbadibo’s proximity to the Enugu (Southeast) border as a major factor.
“Yes, Fulani kidnappers have established camps across some Local Government Areas in Benue South. We have Amla and Efugegwanokwu forests in Otukpo, Apa-Agila Forest in Ado, Ugbokolo-Okpoga, Enimado Forest in Orokam, Ogbadibo and host of others in Ohimini, Apa and Agatu”
“Just yesterday, some passengers were abducted along Orokam-Enugu road and taken to Enimado Forest, we have made a first attempt to rescue them but failed. We will still make (another) attempt today”, Pablo in an interview with TruthNigeria on Monday.
Kidnap Victims’ Accounts
Adanu Eigege (65), retired Director of Administration and Supply with the State Government, was kidnapped on the Adoka–Apa Road. She confirmed that Fulani were involved in the kidnapping.
In an interview with TruthNigeria Eigege said, “I and other 7 victims were abducted by about 10 well armed Fulani militia, speaking Fufulde and chanting ‘Allahu Akbar’, held us for three days in the Apa/Ankpa Forest before releasing us after payment of Ten Million Naira (₦10 million) ransom.
Another victim, a 28-year-old woman who wouldn’t want her named mentioned, spoke to TruthNigeria. She also confirmed her abductors were Fulani.
She said, “I was abducted in Orokam by about 12 Fulani kidnappers, taken to Enimado Forest with 9 others victims and raped repeatedly before vigilantes rescued her.
Sectarian Undercurrent
Local vigilante leaders and analysts say the scale and coordination show religious and ethnic motives.
Benue South Youth Leader, Mike Magaji, speaking with TruthNigeria, described it as part of a “broader sectarian campaign to weaken Christian farming communities and takeover their land.”
Political analyst, Sam Agebe warned, it is becoming “religious cleansing through economic strangulation.”
Federal Government Denial
Despite repeated alarms, the Federal Government downplays the crisis as “isolated banditry.” This denial came even as local officials, including, Ojotu Ojema, a Federal Lawmaker representing Apa/Agatu Federal Constituency at the National Assembly, lampooned Abuja over its denial and inaction.
“It’s disheartening that people are being kidnapped weekly while Federal authority claims it’s exaggerated,” Ojema said in an interview with TruthNigeria.
Communities Abandoned
With little federal support, locals have formed volunteer guards and watch groups but lack arms to confront the militants. Farmers in Apa and Agatu are abandoning farmlands, threatening regional food security.
A Looming Catastrophe
Experts warn that if unaddressed, these camps could become insurgent enclaves similar to those in Zamfara and Kaduna. There are growing calls for special forces, aerial surveillance, and coordinated operations to dismantle them.
Benue South now stands between federal denial and local desperation — between sectarian conquest and national conscience. Without urgent intervention, it risks becoming Nigeria’s next epicenter of terror economics.
Ekani Olikita, a Conflict Reporter for TruthNigeria.
