28 Human Skulls, Bones of Suspected Kidnap Victims Found in Forest

• Security operatives launched a raid on suspected criminal camps in the Umunneochi area of Abia State following intelligence reports
• The remains of at least 28 people were recovered from two forests, with police suspecting the victims were kidnapping targets
• Abia State Police Commissioner Wilfred Afolabi said the operation is part of a broader campaign to dismantle criminal hideouts across the state

Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over eight years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues

Abia State - Security operatives in Abia State have uncovered the skulls and bones of at least 28 people during a raid on suspected criminal camps inside forests in the south-eastern state.

The remains were found in the Umuaku and Nneato forests on Saturday following a security operation in the Umunneochi local government area.

The Abia State Police Command confirmed that forensic investigations are under way to establish who the victims were and how they died.

As reported by BBC News, the police spokeswoman Maureen Chinaka said officers moved into the area on the strength of intelligence pointing to suspected criminal activity in the forests.

Chinaka said when operatives arrived, those at the camps escaped into the surrounding bush.

"Upon arrival of the Command's tactical operatives at the camps, the suspects fled. The criminal camps were subsequently dismantled. A total of twenty-eight human skulls and bones, suspected to be kidnap victims, were recovered," Chinaka said.

Police believe the remains belong to kidnapping victims, though investigations are continuing.

The Abia State Police Commissioner Wilfred Afolabi described the operation as part of a sustained effort to locate and shut down criminal hideouts across the state.

Surveillance has since been stepped up in the area as officers work to track down the suspects who escaped.

Residents have been urged to come forward with any information about suspicious activity to help identify the victims and determine whether the remains are linked to unresolved kidnapping cases in the region.

Security forces have previously uncovered decomposing bodies believed to be connected to kidnapping activity during earlier raids in Umunneochi.

Wave of kidnappings hits northern states

The discovery in Abia came as more than 80 people, most of them women, were seized in separate mass abductions across two northern states over the same weekend.

In Niger State, gunmen abducted nearly 50 farmers in an attack on Sunday. In the neighbouring state of Zamfara, around 40 women were taken the same day, according to two security reports and a local source cited by AFP.

Kidnapping for ransom has become a significant source of income for criminal groups across Nigeria, including bandits and militant Islamists operating in the north, as well as organised gangs in forest areas of the south-east who have long targeted motorists, travellers, and local residents.

Army, police arrest 6 kidnappers in Edo forest

Meanwhile, Legit.ng also reported that security forces in Edo State carried out a daring night raid in Agbede Forest, leading to the arrest of six suspected kidnappers.

The operation was based on intelligence provided by a victim who identified the camp where he had been held captive.

Authorities said the arrests sent a strong warning to criminal groups that Edo forests would no longer serve as safe havens.