Suspected bandits have killed about 17 persons including Customs, Police personnel and mourners in Kebbi, Zamfara and Plateau states.
In the Kebbi incident, the bandits suspected to be members of Lakurawa group, killed two officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and a local at Bachaka border in Argungu local government area of Kebbi State.
They also struck in Zamfara State where they killed a policeman, four Community Protection Guards (CPG) and two hunters in a fierce battle.
Ten mourners were also killed by gunmen in Ruwi Village of Bokkos local government area of Plateau State.
The Kebbi State Police command spokesperson, SP Nafiu Abubakar, who confirmed the attack, said NCS has many units and denominations therefore the command of the affected officers was yet to be established.
He said, “Yes, there was an attack at a border checkpoint in Arewa local government of Kebbi State and it resulted in the killing of two yet-to-be identified Customs officers and one native of Bachaka village.”
The state commissioner of police, Bello Sani, who visited the scene of the attack, said the combined forces would not be intimidated by the bandits’ intermittent attacks which are evidence of being weakened by sustained onslaught designed to decimate them.
Bello however urged the people living in the border areas to always report any suspicious movement in their communities to security personnel for immediate intervention.
The latest attack on uniform and civilians on that axis came barely 24 hours after the combined security forces neutralised two Lakurawa members in Kebbi.
In Zamfara State, the Police command spokesman, DSP Yazid Abubakar, yesterday said a clash occurred about 3:40am when the bandits who were in large number stormed Keta village in Tsafe local government area to attack villagers.
Yazid said in an attempt to repel the attack, a joint operation comprising Police Mobile Force (PMF), Counter Terrorists Unit (CTU), hunters and Civilian Protection Guards (CPG) members were mobilised and engaged the bandits in a gun battle.
He said during the offensive, one police personnel, four CPG members and two hunters were killed.
He said several bandits were also killed including one of their leaders, Dan Isihu who is the younger brother to their wanted leader, Ado Alero.
He said two hunters who were seriously wounded are receiving treatment at a federal hospital in Gusau, the state capital.
“As part of the Zamfara State Police Command’s efforts to rid the state of crime and restore confidence among the people, a joint operation was conducted to repel a bandits’ attack on Keta town in Tsafe LGA,” Abubakar said.
In the Plateau attack, a reliable source told our correspondent that the gunmen stormed their community at about 10pm on Thursday night and opened fire on innocent persons mourning the death of their loved one.
In a statement in Jos, the state commissioner of Police, Emmanuel Adesina, through the command’s spokesperson, Alfred Alabo, expressed his sympathy and condolence to the families of the deceased and the entire people of Plateau for the regrettable incident which occurred in Ruwi Village.
He explained that at about 10pm, the command received a report of some armed hoodlums invading Ruwi village at about 09:20pm.
He said, as a result of the sporadic shooting, some law-abiding residents of the community who were at a wake-keep lost their lives, while others sustained varying degrees of injuries.
Alabo said, “Upon receiving the report, the commissioner of police immediately directed the DPO Bokkos Division to mobilise and deploy officers to the scene for necessary action.”
The commissioner of police also deployed additional manpower and operational assets from the state headquarters to Bokkos and its surrounding local government areas.
He directed the area commander, Pankshin, to relocate to Bokkos for strict supervision of all operations and to avoid a recurrence of such unfortunate incidents until normalcy is restored.
The Plateau State government condemned the killing of the victims by the gunmen at Ruwi.
This was contained in a statement by the commissioner for Information and Communication, Hon Joyce Ramnap.
The state government sympathised with the deceased’s families, stressing that the acts of lawlessness undermined its efforts at entrenching harmonious living among residents of the state.
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