Bandits have attacked Government Secondary School (GSS) Opada-Olowa in Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State, abducting the principal, a National Examinations Council (NECO) ad hoc supervisor and four students in the middle of an ongoing examination.

The gunmen reportedly struck in the late afternoon, bursting into the school compound while candidates were seated for the Literature in English paper. Witnesses said the sudden incursion sent students and staff scrambling for safety as shots rang out around the premises.

Security sources said a combined team of soldiers, police operatives, vigilantes and local hunters was immediately deployed, launching a search-and-rescue operation into the surrounding forests. One of the abducted students has since been rescued, while efforts continue to locate and free the remaining victims.

The joint security team is said to be combing nearby bush paths, mounting surveillance and gathering intelligence from local communities in a bid to track the kidnappers’ movements and identify their hideouts.

A community leader, Sunday Alkali, recounted that residents had been resting under trees when the armed men first appeared.

The gunmen, he said, seemed taken aback by the number of people outside and briefly withdrew, only to return moments later, firing sporadically and forcing villagers to flee. It was only after the shooting died down that residents realised the school had been the main target.

“After the gunfire stopped, some of us went to the school and found examination papers scattered across classrooms and the compound. There were no students or officials in sight,” one resident said.

The abducted victims were later identified as the principal, Mr Nyada Daniel, NECO supervisor, Mr Solomon Audu, and four students whose names were withheld for security reasons. Locals noted that the toll could have been far worse had it been a core subject such as English Language or Mathematics, which usually draws a larger number of candidates.

Community sources disclosed that the kidnappers have contacted at least four families, demanding substantial ransoms for the release of their relatives.

Spokesperson for the Kogi State Police Command, ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, confirmed the attack and the abductions, saying a coordinated operation involving multiple security agencies was underway. She said one student had been rescued and assured that efforts were being intensified to secure the safe return of the remaining hostages and bring the perpetrators to justice.