Bandits at the weekend killed 26 persons, including a police officer in another deadly attack on some communities in Bungudu Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
The spokesperson of the Zamfara Police Command, Shehu Mohammed, explained that the assailants were armed with sophisticated weapons and invaded Tofa village in large numbers, shooting sporadically and killing some of the villagers.
Shehu noted that the gunmen were on their way to carry out another attack in Samawa when they were engaged in a gun battle with the police tactical operatives stationed in the village.
Some of the bandits, he said, were wounded in the duel. The attackers were said to be returning to the community, preventing the villagers from burying their own.
The latest assault on the northwestern state follows a similar incident in the area on Thursday where 12 farmers were killed and nine others severely wounded.
It was gathered that the armed bandits launched the attack when the farmers were in their respective farmlands trying to clear their lands in preparation for this year’s farming activities.
The incident which took place in Magami and Mayaba communities in Gusau Local Government Area of Zamfara State saw the bandits also carting away livestock and other valuables.
It was also said that the twelve persons killed were buried according to Islamic rites while those injured are receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital.
A day before the incident, bandits had attacked a Fulani settlement on the outskirts of Anka town along the Bagega-Anka Road in Zamfara State.
Sources said the armed men stormed the area at about 5 pm on Wednesday and began to shoot sporadically.
But the bandits were engaged in a gun duel by the policemen who were stationed in a mining company along the road, an eyewitness said.
He stated that no life was lost in the attack, but the bandits rustled an unspecified number of cows belonging to members of the community.
The witness said a motorcycle belonging to the leader of Fulani in Anka was also set ablaze by the armed bandits.
