The Imo State Police Command has identified the location where 19 prospective National Youth Service Corps members abducted in the state are believed to be held but has delayed moving into the area over fears that the camp is planted with improvised explosive devices.

The Commissioner of Police, CP Audu Garba Bosso, disclosed this on Saturday while providing an update on the search-and-rescue operation.

Bosso said security operatives used drones on Friday to locate the suspected camp after trailing the abductors into the bush.

He said the drone surveillance provided the exact coordinates of the location but security personnel could not immediately enter the area because intelligence indicated that the camp had been mined with IEDs.

The commissioner said security agencies were preparing to move into the area with heavy equipment, including bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers, to facilitate the safe rescue of the victims.

He said the operation would be conducted carefully to avoid exposing the abducted corps members and security personnel to additional danger.

The development follows the abduction of prospective corps members travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states.

The victims were travelling in two buses when gunmen attacked them along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in the Umunoha area of Imo State on Thursday.

The Managing Director of Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited, Isiah Akpan, said 19 passengers, all prospective corps members, were taken into the bush after the attack.

The police had earlier reported that 10 passengers were rescued following the attack and that the two buses involved were recovered. However, the command said it was still working to establish the exact number and identities of those abducted.

The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, subsequently deployed the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Nadada, alongside senior officers to coordinate the rescue operation in Imo.

The abductors have reportedly demanded N50 million for each of the 19 victims, amounting to N950 million, with some families contacted through the phones of their abducted relatives.

Bosso said the security agencies would continue efforts to secure the safe release of the victims and apprehend those responsible for the abduction.