From Sidi Ibrahim Kaulahi, in Nigeria Gusau
Suspected armed bandits have invaded headquarters of Bungudu local government area and Yargada, Maikogo, Magama villages under Magami district in Gusau and Maru local government areas of Zamfara State on Sunday evening and early hours of Monday respectively.
Narrating the incident, a survivor of the attack in Magama Mairake, Malam Lawali Kutsa Ada, said the suspected bandits in their large numbers invaded the village at about 12:00am while shooting sporadically before they commenced house-to-house search for their targeted victims.
Kutsa said the suspected bandits who used firepower to gain access into a number of houses, were able to abduct about 44 people, most of them women and children, who helplessly moved down to the nearby bush.
According to him, in the course of abducting their targeted victims, the gunmen set about 10 parked vehicles ablaze including trucks and other commercial vehicles belonging to the members of the community.
According to another eyewitness in Magama Mairake who preferred anonymous for security reasons, a Police team had quickly responded to the distress call, but they could not instantly face the bandits for reasons of their number, and the caliber of weapons they carried which were not as sophisticated as those been held by the suspected bandits.
“Considering the time the Police team arrived the village, the abducted victims could have been rescued, but due to sophisticated weapons carried by the bandits, the Police team had to resort to preventing them from further advancing with the victims”.
The attackers, according to narrations, simultaneously invaded the villages of ‘Yargada and Maikogo all under Magami district of Gusau local government area where they abducted yet to be specified number of people.
In same vein, another group of suspected bandits have attacked the headquarters of Bungudu local government area on Sunday evening allegedly killed unspecified number and abducted 11 people.
According one Abdurrazaq, a resident of Bungudu, said the bandits were allegedly on a mission to re-abduct the local government Chairman who recently escaped from their enclave alongside 4 others.
Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Yazid Abubakar, said a report has been received that suspected bandits had invaded and abducted 11 persons, and the Zamfara State Police Command had deployed Search and Rescue Squad to ensure the safe rescue of the victims.
In addition, the PPRO further revealed that the same team has since been deployed to secure the release of people been abducted by the bandits in Magama Mairake under Maru local government area.
He added that the Command is still investigating the real number of the abducted persons which might be quiet less than what members of the community had claimed.
The exact figure according to the PPRO, has not been identified yet as Police are currently investigating the incident as well as cordoning off the area by the search and rescue team to prevent further move by the suspected bandits with the victims.
“The deployed men of the Zamfara Police Command are currently there doing the needful to prevent any further move by the suspected bandits in their efforts to escape with the victims”, he said.
