In a brazen attack, gunmen suspected to be bandits invaded the Mbacher community in Katsina-Ala Local Government Area of Benue State on Friday night, leaving a trail of death and destruction.
The bandits, who defied the curfew imposed by the state government in the local government area two weeks ago stormed the community at around 11 pm, killing 18 people in cold blood.
The curfew, which runs from 6 pm to 6 am, was meant to restore peace and order in the Sankara axis, which includes Katsina-Ala, Ukum, and Logo. However, the bandits seemed to have mocked the authorities, carrying out their deadly attack with impunity.
The Sankara axis has remained a flashpoint of criminality in Benue State, with frequent reports of banditry, kidnapping, and communal clashes. The latest attack has raised concerns about the effectiveness of the curfew and the ability of the authorities to protect lives and property in the area.
A source from the local government said that the bandits assembled the people pretending to be addressing them when they opened fire on some of them.
18 bodies were reportedly recovered Saturday morning by the military.
Confirming the incident, the Chairman of Katsina-Ala LGA, Justine Shaku, said the bandits had concluded their operations before the military got to the village.
Shaku said, “At about 11 pm yesterday (Friday), we received a distress call from the villagers that some group of terrorists mobilise themselves and were moving from house to house, forcing people to follow them.
“I quickly mobilised the military officers that were in Tor Doonga, and being a remote area, before they could reach there, the people had been killed”.
“Yesterday night, I was told it was 17, but today 18 people have been confirmed dead. All of them were assembled in one place and killed.
“This morning, I, the assembly member and adviser on legislative matters, held a meeting, and we communicated the development to the Commissioner of Police,” he added.
The council chairman described the activities of bandits in the area as a ‘gorilla type of war’ describing the gunmen as “local terrorists”.
“I no longer call them bandits because I’m seeing hands/elements of terrorism in their activities. So to me, I classify them as terrorists now.
“But they are terrorists within though they have external forces, those who are sponsoring and helping them to perpetrate the acts. The locals are the major people that are doing it.
Efforts to get the Police Public Relations Officer, Catherine Anene, to confirm the incident were not successful. Meanwhile, Joseph Har, the Special Adviser on Security and Internal Affairs to Governor Hyacinth Alia, confirmed the incident.
