A freed teacher in Oyo State, Zachery Olatunde, says his 56-day captivity in the Old Oyo National Park was real and dismisses claims that the school kidnapping was staged. In a video shared online, Olatunde recounts that his abductors sometimes washed the captives’ clothes when they noticed they were becoming dirty and smelling, arguing that the detail was misinterpreted by critics. He also responds to assertions that the abduction lacked realism by pointing to the deaths of two victims, including a teacher who was beheaded, as evidence that people were harmed during the ordeal.
Olatunde was abducted after armed men stormed three schools in Oriire Local Government Area on May 15, 2026, seizing 46 pupils and teachers. He was released on July 10 following a coordinated operation involving the Nigerian Army, Police, the DSS, Civil Defence Corps, Amotekun, and local vigilantes. The Presidency later stated that no ransom was paid. Olatunde urges people to stop spreading what he calls false claims about the incident.
