Bandits Kill 10, Abduct Village Head in Katsina

By James Danjuma, Katsina

At least 10 people have lost their lives after an attack by suspected bandits at Guga village in Bakori Local Government Area of Katsina state.

The village head of the community, Alhaji Umar was among several people that included women and children, who were abducted by the bandits.

The incident, according to a source in the area, occurred in the wee hours of Tuesday, with the bandits said to have operated for hours unchallenged.

During the attack, the bandits were said to have “moved from house to house, carting anything of value, including food items, handsets, money and clothes.

“They also set several houses ablaze, rustled unspecified number of livestock, and abducted dozens of people, including women and children,” the source said.

He added, “They came in their dozens, armed with automatic weapons, and shot several times into the air to scare people and vigilantes away.

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“During the attack, they also set several houses and vehicles on fire, and injured several people, some of whom are receiving treatment at the hospital.”

According to reports, the eldest son of the village head, Abdullahi Umar, confirmed his father’s abduction.

Abdullahi said, “When they came, they started shooting sporadically to scare people away. I was in my room because it was after 1am.

“As I tried coming out, I met my father also coming out going toward the village center where the shooting was coming from.

“The bandits returned with him into the house, took some food stuffs and left with him.”

He, however, added that the bandits were yet to reach out to them to negotiate for his release.

Spokesperson for the police command in the state, SP Gambo Isah confirmed the incident, but did not provide details.