From Muhammad Ahmadu Saka, in Bauchi
Unknown gunmen have invaded Rafin Ciyawa Village in Ningi Local Government Area of Bauchi State, killing two persons, injuring six and abducting three people to unknown destination.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Nafiu Habib, confirmed the incident in a telephone interview with newsmen in Bauchi.
He said, “Yes, it happened. There was an attack on the Rafin Ciyawa community by gunmen. Three people were kidnapped, while two lost their lives in the attack.
“Already, VRCU and AKU personnel, supported by local hunters and vigilante members, were immediately deployed to the area and are still there to rescue the kidnapped victims and arrest suspects. Thank you.”
Reports from the village revealed that gunmen in large numbers invaded the area, shooting sporadically and forcing residents to flee for safety.
A resident of the village, a 15-year-old boy, narrated that they were sleeping after their lessons when the gunmen invaded and shot at them, wounding him and others in the process.
He displayed the gunshot wounds, which had been treated, and he is recuperating at home, thanking Allah for sparing his life.
Another resident, Zubairu Yahaya, narrated that the boys were sleeping outside in front of their teacher’s house after their Quranic lessons, as usual, while other residents were in their homes.
Zubairu said that, “Over the years, it has been the practice for the children to sleep outside, especially during the hot weather. We were all in our various homes when, at about 12:30 a.m., we heard sporadic gunshots.”
He said “We thought they were local vigilante members or policemen, but we later discovered they were bandits. After the gunshots subsided, we rushed to where the children were and saw a number of them writhing in pain from the gunshots. We discovered that two of them were killed instantly, while six others were badly injured.”
Zubairu explained that “We thought they had left, and we started making arrangements to move the wounded children for medical attention when suddenly they came back, shooting as they had done earlier.”
He said , “They started going from house to house asking for Saminu, their main target for kidnapping, and his younger brother, Safiyanu. They said they were informed that he had just collected a huge amount of money.”
“They did not get him, but they kidnapped his family members and are now demanding ransom. They condoled with us over the death of the two children, saying it was a mistake as the children were not the target. They said we should accept it as an act of Allah,” he added.
He called on the relevant authorities to come to their aid, rescue the kidnapped victims, and provide adequate security, saying, “This is the first time we are witnessing this in the village in over 50 years.”
Also, Mukhtar Usman a relative of sufyani narrated that he was in his house when the gunmen invaded, asking for the whereabouts of his younger brother, who unfortunately was not around at the time.
He said “Allah saved me from being killed following arguments among the gunmen over whether to kill me or not. Other people in the house had scaled the fence into the neighbouring house.”
He said that three people were kidnapped from the compound — two women and one man — identifying them as Rukkaya, Samsiyya and Kabiru.
“They have contacted me by phone demanding ransom for the release of the kidnapped victims. We are still negotiating with them. They are demanding N10 million after coming down from the initial N100 million.”
