Bandits have killed four people and abducted 150 others, including two babies aged six and eight months in an attack on Dan Isa village, Kaura Namoda Local Government Area (LGA) of Zamfara State on Sunday.
Dan Isa is situated less than 14 kilometres from Gusau, the state capital.
The attack happened just a week after 46 residents of Dogon Kade were released by bandits, following alleged payment of N21 million ransom.
A resident of Dan Isa, whose wife and son were abducted, confirmed the incident to Daily Trust.
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The resident, who pleaded anonymity, said the bandits stormed the village around 3pm on Sunday, operating for six hours.
According to him, the bandits arrived on about 150 motorbikes, each carrying three people, and began shooting sporadically, causing residents to flee for safety
“My wife, Na’imah and our six-month-old child, Sudais, were among the victims. My brother’s wife, Aisha, and her eight-month-old child were also abducted. Several women and children were taken during the attack,” he said.
Another resident, Muhammad Auwal (not his real name), recounted that Hajiya Rakiya, wife of Wamban Dan Isa, Alhaji Bello Halilu, was abducted, and other women were injured in Mr. Halilu’s house.
Two wives of Wamban Dan Isa’s younger brother, Malama Luba and Malama Talatu, were also kidnapped, he added.
“I also learnt that Malam Musa Ajiya was among the people that escaped from the bandits but four women including his wife, Suwaiba, and the wife of Shafi’u, his younger brother, were all abducted in his residence,” he said.
Aminu Bello Dan Isa, another resident, said that the attack was carried out by a gang led by a notorious bandit called Alhaji Shehu Bagiwa.
Though sources said Bagiwa did not participate in the heinous act directly, escaped women reported seeing his lieutenant, Aminu Baka-da-dadi, leading the operation.
“Some women who escaped returned with fractured legs and various injuries, having been beaten by the bandits in the bush before they managed to flee,” Dan Isa added.
The village has since been deserted, with residents relocating to places like Kasuwar Daji, Rawayya, Gyambarawa, and Gusau, due to fear of further attacks.
Dan Isa village had faced repeated bandit attacks over the past five years, resulting in numerous deaths and abductions. Residents appealed to the government for assistance, urging the deployment of soldiers to the area.
They stressed the need to eliminate bandits, especially notorious ones such as Bagiwa and Baka-da-dadi.
“We need more security personnel around us otherwise we will not go back to the village,” Aminu Bello said.
“Previously, we had soldiers in the village but since they were taken to another place, the bandits returned to the area, attacking us almost all the time.
“The bandits are heartless and merciless human beings. Once they are eliminated, things will normalise in the area; they are our problem in this part of the state,” he said.
No information yet – Police commissioner
When contacted, the Zamfara State Commissioner of Police, Muhammad Shehu Dalijan, said the police had not received information about this specific attack.
However, he confirmed five attacks in Gusau last week, with 11 people abducted.
He said police killed some bandits in Damba, on the outskirts of Gusau, on Sunday, while foiling a banditry operation.
Dalijan assured that security had been increased in the state capital, with 54 patrol vehicles deployed for surveillance.
He appealed to the public to provide the police useful information to help combat banditry in the state.
Our correspondent reports that the men of the underworld have upped their attacks on many communities in Zamfara State.
This newspaper had reported on Monday, how bandits recently abducted many people in different communities of Zurmi LGA in the state.
The bandits imposed almost N150 million as levies on several communities, saying residents must contribute and that amount before they would be allowed to access their farmlands.
The affected villages and the levies imposed on them are: Yan Dolen Kaura, N15 million; Gidan Zagi, N15 million; Kanwa, N20 million; Kaiwa Lamba, N26 million; Gidan Dan Zara, N22 million; Jinkirawa, N16 million; Dumfawa, N16 million; Ruguje, N7 million; Babani, N3 million and Gidan Duwa, N4 million.
The residents of the villages said they were under pressure to raise those funds within the period specified by the bandits.
It was gathered that some villages have paid their levies, while others are scrambling to gather the required amounts.
A resident of Zurmi town, Malam Yunusa Musa, told Daily Trust that the levies are effective from this week.
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