Gunmen Kidnap 6 Directors of Ministry of Defence Along Kabba-Lokoja Highway

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Nov 11, 2025 #ASCSN FMOD statement kidnapping, #civil servants kidnapped Nigeria, #Federal Ministry of Defence abduction, #Kabba-Lokoja highway kidnapping, #kidnap six directors Defence Ministry, #promotion examination travel risks Nigeria, #road security Kabba-Lokoja expressway

Malik Yahya/

Six directors from the Federal Ministry of Defence (FMOD) were abducted on Monday, by unidentified gunmen while travelling along the Kabba-Lokoja expressway in Kogi State.

The officials were en route from Lagos to Abuja to sit a directorate-level promotion examination when their convoy was intercepted in what sources described as a carefully orchestrated ambush.

According to a joint statement by the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) representing FMOD staff, the six kidnapped officials are: Mrs Ngozi Ibeziakor, Mrs C.A. Emeribe, Mrs Helen Ezeakor, Mrs C.A. Ladoye, Mrs J.A. Onwuzurike and Mrs Catherine O. Essien.

The ASCSN condemned the incident as “sad and deeply disturbing”, lamenting the requirement that candidates travel long distances to Abuja for promotion tests rather than use zonal centres closer to their home states.

The union warned that the current security environment and the state of the highways expose civil-servants to grave risk.

NewsmakersNG learnt that the Ministry of Defence has deployed its internal security apparatus and is collaborating with law-enforcement agencies in Kogi State to locate and rescue the abductees.

Search operations are reportedly underway in the forest and bush-areas along the Kabba-Lokoja corridor.

The abduction has triggered alarm in public-service circles, raising urgent questions about the safety of civil-servants required to travel for official duties and the broader state of road security in the region.

The Kabba-Lokoja highway, which connects parts of the Federal Capital Territory and the South-West, has become notorious for kidnappings and ambushes.

As of publication, no official word has been released regarding ransom demands or the condition of the kidnapped directors.

Families of the victims and the ASCSN are calling for an immediate rescue operation and a review of the promotion examination policy to safeguard the welfare of public servants.