Nigeria has for years wrestled with insurgency, banditry and kidnappings — phenomena once largely confined to the North‑West and North‑East have now cast a long shadow over the south, especially the South‑South region. The recent kidnappings in states such as Delta State are stark reminders that no zone is immune to this creeping malaise.
A new front in the war on insecurity
Where once the forestry of northern Nigeria served as the hideout for bandits, today forests in Delta and neighbouring states are increasingly being exploited. According to data, the South‑South recorded 23 incidents of kidnapping or abduction in February 2025. In Delta State, in particular, security forces have reported multiple kidnappings that make clear the methods and scale are evolving.
In mid‑July 2025, the Delta State Police Command arrested five suspected kidnappers and recovered ₦5 million in ransom in a joint operation in the forests near Ogwashi‑Uku, Oshimili North LGA.
Earlier in the same month, two female polytechnic students were abducted in Ogwashi‑Uku, and subsequent operations recovered ₦3.5 million and deadly weapons including an AK‑47.
Another gang, reportedly led by one “Adusa”, was planning abductions of high‑profile individuals in Sapele and Oghara when police swooped in and recovered 247 rounds of live ammunition.
These cases suggest a clear pattern: kidnappings in the South‑South are not random acts of violence but increasingly organised, sophisticated revenue‑driven businesses exploiting weak security nets, rugged terrain and custodial corridors.
Why the South‑South is vulnerable
The South‑South may not have the same bandit culture as the North, but it has a combination of factors that make kidnappings viable:
Forest hideouts and difficult terrain: Reports indicate the forests around Ogwashi‑Uku, Ubulu‑Uku, Isele‑Uku and surrounding areas have become hideouts.
Weak local vigilance and complicity: Some operations indicate that spiritual or ritual facilitators (‘witch doctors’) are involved in fortifying gangs.
Demand for ransom: The motive is clear. The kidnappers treat victims as ATMs— “cash machines” to exploit. A Vanguard report noted kidnappers extorted millions in Edo and Delta by turning the residents into cash cows.
Shifts in tactics: Rather than large mass abductions (more common in the North), South‑South kidnappings tend to target commuters on express roads, students, individuals perceived as affluent, or high‑profile targets. The implication is a stealthier, more targeted business model.
The wider implications
The proliferation of kidnappings in the South‑South has major consequences:
Erosion of public trust: When citizens cannot feel safe in their own communities, let alone while commuting or sending children to school, the social contract frays.
Economic damage: The South‑South, long viewed as an oil‑rich region, now faces the double hit of insecurity and the attendant reluctance of investment, especially in agriculture, transport and infrastructure.
Governance failure: These kidnappings expose gaps in Nigeria’s security architecture — not just at the federal level, but in states, local governments and at community policing levels.
Human cost: Behind every ransom, every forest hideout, are victims traumatised, families impoverished, students disrupted. It is no exaggeration to say the fear of being abducted now permeates large swathes of daily life.
Moving from reaction to prevention
The arrests in Delta are welcome, but the scale of the problem demands more than tactical operations. Decision‑makers must pivot to a more comprehensive strategy:
Intelligence‑led policing: The operations that succeeded involved good intelligence — the trail to Ogwashi‑Uku, to high‑profile abduction planning. This must be scaled up.
Community‑state partnership: Communities must be empowered and trusted as stabilisers — local vigilance, credible informants, rapid incident response.
Addressing root causes: Economic deprivation, unemployment among youths, frustration — these remain fuel for criminal recruitment. Without tackling these, kidnappings will persist.
Legal and judicial follow‑through: Arrests alone are not enough. Conviction, transparency, prosecution must send a strong message: abduction for ransom is high risk, no longer low cost.
Regional coordination: Kidnap gangs cross LGA and state borders; forests in Delta aren’t isolated. Collaboration with neighbouring states and federal agencies is essential.
Public reassurance: Government must communicate progress, safeguard corridors (like expressways and school routes), restore public confidence.
Conclusion
The South‑South region of Nigeria, once viewed as relatively insulated from the worst of the country’s kidnapping epidemic, now finds itself in the cross‑hairs of a well‑organised, high‑ransom business model. Delta State’s recent kidnappings illustrate this shift vividly. The urgency is clear: unless Nigeria acts decisively and strategically, the ripple effects will be felt not just in personal tragedies but across the national economy, governance legitimacy and social stability.
Kidnappings are more than criminal acts; they are signals — alarms that the state’s monopoly on violence is weakening, that parts of society are becoming off‑limits to law and order. If the nation fails to answer these signals in the South‑South now, the consequences will only deepen.
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