Herdsmen Kill Five in Fresh Attack on Taraba

Wole Ayodele in Jalingo

Five people were killed and several others injured as herdsmen launched attacks on Dan-Anacha and Dinya villages in Gassol Local Government Area of Taraba State.

The attacks, which started at Dinya at about 4.00pm on Monday, spilled to Dan-Anacha in the early hours of Tuesday and continued tiłl about 4.30am.

THISDAY investigations revealed that the attack occurred following a disagreement over ownership of a farmland which the herdsmen claimed has been sold to them by a traditional ruler in the area.

However, the villagers, who are mainly of Tiv extraction, claimed that the contentious land has been their farmland for decades and wondered why anybody or group would claim to have sold or bought it.

Confirming the incident to newsmen, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Taraba State Police Command David Misal said five people were killed in the attack and several others sustained serious injuries while several houses were also set ablaze.

According to Misal, security personnel have been deployed in the area to restore normalcy but lamented that the attackers had fled before the arrival of security men.

“The attackers stormed the villages and burnt down several houses and in the process, five people were killed and several others sustained varying degree of injuries.

“We deployed our men to the area, but unfortunately, the bandits fled before the arrival of the police but our men shot and killed one of them who was trying to escape with valuable items,” he said.

The police spokesman however maintained that the area is now calm following the quick response of the police just as he insisted that the situation in the area has been brought under control.

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