The Nigerian Navy has rescued 22 passengers abducted by suspected sea robbers after their wooden passenger boat was hijacked along the Calabar–Oron–Ibaka waterway in Akwa Ibom State. The passengers were rescued in a coordinated operation involving personnel of the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Ibaka, Operation Delta Safe (OPDS) Sector 4 and the Marine Police, the Navy said.
The Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday. According to Folorunsho, the incident occurred on 11 August 2026 when the passenger boat, travelling from Henshaw Town Beach in Calabar to Utan Uyata, Ibaka, was intercepted by armed sea robbers shortly after passing Enwang Community.
The assailants hijacked the vessel and abducted the passengers, prompting security forces to launch a coordinated operation to locate the victims and recover the boat. Folorunsho said the operation led to the recovery of the hijacked vessel and the rescue of 11 victims who had been abandoned by the suspected criminals at Asak-Ikang Creek.
He added that another 11 passengers who escaped during the attack were later located and accounted for at the OPDS Sector 4 command post, bringing the total number of rescued and accounted-for victims to 22. The rescued passengers were taken to the FOB Ibaka Sickbay for medical assessment and first aid before arrangements were made for their safe return to Calabar with the recovered boat.
Folorunsho said no ransom was paid for the release of the victims.