By THE Rivers State Police Command has confirmed the abduction of five students of Rivers State University (RSU) from their off-campus residence in Emuoha Local Government Area.
Police spokesperson, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, told journalists in Port Harcourt on Tuesday that the armed men stormed the Rumuche/Rumuohia area in the early hours of the day, firing shots before seizing the students and taking them to an unknown location.
According to her, “At about 0230hrs on 2 December 2025, a group of suspected cultists, numbering about five, attacked the area and abducted five persons. The hoodlums shot sporadically and whisked the victims away.”
She added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Olugbenga Adepoju, alongside other service commanders, had visited the scene for an on-the-spot assessment.
The CP has directed the Area Commander, tactical units and the Joint Taskforce to intensify search efforts, ensure the safe rescue of the victims, and arrest the perpetrators.
“The CP further assured that all suspects involved will be brought to justice and made to face the full wrath of the law,” Iringe-Koko stated.
The incident comes barely a week after students living around the university’s Emuoha satellite campus protested recurrent attacks and harassment by hoodlums.
They called on the university management to relocate them to the main campus in Port Harcourt.
However, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Isaac Zeb-Obipi, said on Monday that the university would neither close the Emuoha campus nor relocate students due to what he described as “pockets of criminal incidents.”
He added that measures were underway to improve security, including a town hall meeting with the local council, community leaders and security agencies.
One of the students who escaped the attack recounted her ordeal, saying the assailants shot at her but she managed to flee.
“One of them chased me and fired shots. I don’t even know how many times because I didn’t look back—I was just focused on escaping. Someone later emerged from the bush and ran after me. I had to run faster for my life. Some of our students, about four or so, are missing now,” she said.
Another student, who resides in the area, expressed fear over the worsening insecurity.
“We are no longer safe here. The school management, government and security agencies must act, or else I’m not going back there again,” she said.
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