Five men accused of involvement in separate kidnapping incidents in Imo State have pleaded not guilty to charges brought against them by the Department of State Services (DSS).

The defendants were arraigned on Tuesday before the Imo State High Court in Mgbidi, with three of them facing allegations linked to the abduction of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members on October 1, Nigeria’s Independence Day.

The three suspects identified in connection with the incident are Usman Aliyu, 25, also known as Chonge; Babangida Aliyu, 21; and Mohammed Ali, 23, popularly called Smallie Pepper. Prosecutors accused them and other alleged accomplices still at large of kidnapping the prospective corps members along the Owerri–Mgbidi–Onitsha Expressway.

The victims were reportedly travelling from Ibadan to their respective NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states when they were abducted. They were subsequently rescued after spending seven days in captivity.

According to the prosecution, the three defendants face a charge of conspiracy to commit hostage-taking under Section 6 of Imo State’s Prohibition of Hostage Taking and Related Offences Law No. 4 of 2009. The charges also include allegations of unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition.

The DSS further alleged that the defendants possessed three AK-47 rifles, four magazines, a pistol and 81 rounds of live ammunition. The allegations are contained in a charge sheet filed at the High Court’s Oru Judicial Division in Mgbidi.

In a separate case, two other defendants, 27-year-old Aminu Haliru and 20-year-old Tange Ibrahim, also known as Jijji, were arraigned over the alleged abduction of four people around Owerri and Mgbidi on October 4.

Prosecutors alleged that the pair and other suspects at large demanded and received ₦8 million for the release of the victims. They were also accused of illegally possessing an AK-47 rifle and a pump-action gun. The prosecution listed ₦1.8 million as money recovered in connection with the case.

A DSS investigator and the alleged victims were listed as witnesses in both cases. All five defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges, paving the way for further proceedings as the cases move through the judicial process.