John Adoyi
Rofiat Lawal, a National Youth Service Corps member who was kidnapped on the Benin-Ore Expressway on Tuesday, has been released after her family paid a ransom of N1.5 million.
Prime Business Africa had reported that Lawal was kidnapped while travelling from Benin, Edo State to Ibadan, Oyo State, to assume duty at her place of primary assignment in Ogbomosho.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelShe reunited with her family on Saturday, according to one of the family members, who identified himself as Ibn Yunus.
The abductors had allegedly demanded a N20 million ransom, which her family said they could not afford.
After a series of negotiations the kidnappers reduced the amount to N5 million.
Lawal’s family and friends appealed for help as they could not raise the money demanded by the abductors.
In a video shared on Facebook, Lawal narrated her ordeal in the hands of the kidnappers.
She said they were 10 in the vehicle travelling from Benin to Ibadan when they were stopped and six of them abducted
According to her, they were taken into the bush by the abductors who collected their phones and monies.
‘There were some market women going to buy fish. They collected their monies and phones. They collected my phone and N15,000 I had on me,” Lawal stated.
She said her family was able to raise N1.5 million through help from the public that was given to the kidnappers before she was released.
The corps member expressed her gratitude to members of the public who came to her rescue through their generous donation used for payment of ransom to the kidnappers.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
![Worshippers stand inside the Menjar Shenkora Arerti Mariam Church under construction that collapsed in Arerti, Amhara region of northern Ethiopia, on Wednesday, October 1, 2025 [Samuel Getachew/AP Photo]](https://www.primebusiness.africa/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Ethiopian-church-collapse-480x384.webp)
