Suspected Herdsmen Kill Eight People in Two Kogi Communities 

Suspected Herdsmen Kill Eight People in Two Kogi Communities 
  •   Bandits kill policemen, two others in Kaduna  Suicide attacks claim five lives in Maiduguri

By Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja, John Shiklam in Kaduna and Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri

Suspected herdsmen attacked two communities in Kogi State yesterday, killing eight persons.

This is coming as four people, including two policemen have been killed by armed bandits in Kakangi village, Birnin Gwari Local Government Area (LGA) of Kaduna State.

 Five persons have also been killed in suicide attacks on Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

The two Kogi communities of Bagana and Patani in Omala Local Government Area  were allegedly attacked over the night by suspected Fulani herdsmen.

Also, several houses were burnt down with unconfirmed report indicating that eight lives were lost in the attack.

As at the time of this report, anxiety is said to have gripped Abejukolo residents and the environs, as Fulani fighters are said to have picked Abejukolo, Obakume, Ogo and Oganigwu as possible next target.

Oganenigu community and its environs have been deserted into various Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp since yesterday night.

Confirming the attack, the state Police Public Relations officer, Mr. Williams Aya, said the attackers were suspected Fulani militia who invaded the communities, killing four persons, three civilians and a policeman.

He added that the police have however brought the situation under control.

Meanwhile, a resident of the Kaduna community who pleaded anonymity, said in a telephone interview that the bandits invaded the community at about 5 p.m. yesterday and were shooting sporadically.

He said the hoodlums who came to the community on bikes and armed with AK47 rifles, also set houses ablaze.

He said the bandits killed two policemen and  burnt down the police station.

The resident also disclosed that two other people were shot dead while running  for their dear lives.

Several  people were also said to have sustained injuries from gunshots and were rushed to the hospital.

Also in a statement, the Birnin Gwari Vanguard for Security  and Good Governance (BVSGG), confirmed that bandits stormed the community on motorcycle shooting sporadically at the police station before embarking  on a house-to-house attacks.

The statement signed by the Chairman of

BVSGG, Ibrahim Abubakar Nagwari, added that  many people were feared dead, including high profile indigenes of Kakangi who were attending a mass wedding.

“Security situation has worsened due to armed banditry and kidnapping. Many communities particularly along Birnin-Gwari Funtua road have deserted their homes and took refuge in Birnin-Gwari and elsewhere,” the statement said.

The spokesman of the Kaduna State Police Command, Yakubu Sabo, could not be reached as his phone was not connecting.

In another development, five persons have been killed in suicide attacks in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

The suicide attacks carried out by two females strapped with improvised explosive devices, also claimed three other lives.

A statement by the Information Officer with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) AbdulKadir Ibrahim,  said “the Emergency response teams have confirmed that two female PBIED carriers detonated their explosives within five minutes interval at Muna Dalti settlement on Friday evening.

“As a result, three persons died including the two bombers (total of five dead) while close to 41 others sustained various degrees of injuries.”

Ibrahim said the injured persons were currently receiving medical treatment at General Hospital in
Maiduguri.

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