I have never seen Southerners travelling to the North to kidnap people on Northern soil in the same way Nigerians have repeatedly witnessed kidnapping networks operating in Southern communities with suspects identified as Fulanis or people from the North.
That observation raises an uncomfortable but important question about the geography and movement of kidnapping networks in Nigeria: why does the South so often appear to become the destination for criminal groups accused of carrying out kidnappings, particularly along major highways and rural corridors?
The latest case in Imo State has once again brought the issue into sharp focus.
The Department of State Services (DSS) has arraigned five suspects before the Justice Oputa State High Court in Owerri over the alleged abduction of 20 prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and another passenger.
The suspects were identified as Ibrahim Jiji, Aminu Haliru, Mohammed Ali, Usman Aliyu and Babangida Aliyu. They were brought before the court on Tuesday, October 20, 2026.
According to the prosecution, three of the defendants—Usman Aliyu, 25, also known as Chonge; Babangida Aliyu, 21; and Mohammed Ali, 23, also known as Smallie Pepper—were specifically accused of participating in the October 1 abduction of the prospective corps members.
The victims were reportedly travelling from Ibadan to NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when armed men attacked their vehicles along the Owerri-Mgbidi-Onitsha axis in Imo State. They were eventually rescued after spending seven days in captivity.
The prosecution further alleged that the defendants and other suspects still at large were involved in conspiracy to commit hostage-taking, an offence punishable under Section 6 of the Imo State Prohibition of Hostage Taking and Related Offences Law No. 4 of 2009.
The DSS also accused the suspects of unlawful possession of three AK-47 rifles, four magazines, a pistol and 81 rounds of live ammunition.
There is also a separate allegation involving Aminu Haliru and Tange Ibrahim, popularly known as Jijji. Prosecutors alleged that the pair and others still at large abducted four people around Owerri and Mgbidi on October 4 and demanded ₦8 million for their release. An AK-47 rifle and a pump-action firearm were also allegedly recovered in connection with that case.
These allegations should, of course, be tested in court. Being arraigned does not mean that a defendant has been found guilty. The prosecution must establish its case, while the accused persons are entitled to the presumption of innocence and due process.
But beyond the courtroom, the case raises a wider national concern.
Nigeria's kidnapping crisis is not a problem that can be reduced simply to North versus South. Criminality has many causes, and kidnapping occurs in different parts of the country. However, Nigerians have every right to ask why certain criminal networks repeatedly move across regional boundaries and why particular communities continue to bear the consequences.
For residents of the South, especially travellers using major highways, the fear is real. A journey that should ordinarily take a few hours can become a life-threatening experience when criminal gangs turn isolated stretches of road into hunting grounds.
The latest Imo case therefore deserves more than headlines. It demands serious investigation into the identities, origins, networks, financiers, weapons suppliers, informants and escape routes of those responsible.
Most importantly, the government must ensure that kidnapping is treated as a national security emergency rather than a regional political talking point.
Whether the perpetrators come from the North, South, East or West, a kidnapper is a criminal—not a representative of an ethnic group.
The real question Nigerians should be asking is simple: how do these criminal networks operate, who finances them, and why are they still able to move people and weapons across Nigeria with such devastating consequences?
Until those questions are answered decisively, ordinary Nigerians will continue paying the price for the failures of security, intelligence and law enforcement.
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