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Suspected bandits have killed four people and injured several others in Abaushwa community, Nzorov Council Ward of Guma Local Government Area, Benue State.
The spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, Peter Aondona, confirmed the attack, saying the victims were killed by suspected bandits.
“I can confirm that there was an attack in Guma LGA in which four persons were killed by suspected bandits,” he said.
Aondona added that security operatives had launched efforts to apprehend those responsible for the attack.
Residents said the assailants stormed the community around midnight on Monday, attacking people in their homes while they slept.
A resident, Atoundo, said the attack was unprovoked and unlike anything the community had previously experienced.
“They came and attacked the community without any provocation, killing people in their sleep. They forced open the doors of their victims and murdered them inside their houses,” he told Punch.
According to him, three people were initially killed, while several others sustained injuries.
“The injured were taken to the General Hospital in Gbajimba, but one of them later died, bringing the death toll to four,” he added.
A former Executive Secretary of the Benue State Teaching Service Board, Frank Kyungun, who is from the community, also described the assault as unprovoked.
“It was an unprovoked attack by armed herders. They came at about midnight and launched a heavy assault on the community. They killed four people and left several others injured. Those wounded have been taken to the General Hospital in Gbajimba,” Kyungun said.
He added that he joined a former Benue State governor on a condolence visit to the community.
“We accompanied the former governor to sympathise with our people and urged them to remain calm and allow the police to carry out their investigations,” he said.
The Chairman of Guma Local Government Area, Morris Orwough, condemned the killings in a statement issued by his Personal Assistant on Communication and Strategy, Ernest Tortiv.
Orwough said security personnel had been deployed to Abaushwa to restore normalcy, safeguard lives and property, and prevent further attacks.
He also urged residents to remain calm, cooperate with security agencies and continue providing credible information to support efforts to improve security in the area.
