One feared dead in Kaduna as bandits attack Birnin Gwari

Bandits have again killed one person identified as Abdulkarim Bagoma and injured three others in Birnin Gwari local government area of Kaduna state.

This is coming a week after bandits kidnapped seven persons in four separate incidents including women and children in the area.

One of the victims of the earlier kidnapping and member of the Kaduna state House of Assembly, Salisu Haruna, is said to have regained freedom.

However, there is still no word from the staff of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Isa Yahaya, who travelled with his wife and two other members of his family.

According to the Chairman, Birnin-Gwari Vanguards for Security and Good Governance, Ibrahim Abubakar Nagwari, the incident occurred along the Birnin-Gwari-Funtua road, connecting Kaduna and Katsina States on Tuesday.

Nagwari, in a statement on Wednesday, said a young man whose name was given as  Abdulkarim Bagoma was killed on the spot while the whereabouts of one Ibrahim Mai-Alignment, was unknown.

He said three other persons sustained serious injuries from gun shots during the attack and were rushed to the hospital.

Nagwari said the bandits running away from military onslaught in Zamfara State, were relocating to the Birnin Gwari axis to unleash terror on the people.

He lamented that armed bandits had declared total war on the good citizens of Birnin-Gwari and commuters along the two major highways of Birnin-Gwari-Kaduna and Birnin-Gwari-Funtua.

“There is no doubt that the armed bandits had resumed their nefarious act of inflicting irreparable loss of lives, injecting fear, grip and sorrow on the people of Birnin-Gwari local government area as a whole and neighbouring communities in Niger State,” he said.

Nagwari added, “We have for long cautioned the security agencies on the need for a pragmatic approach and strategy in their operations of uprooting all armed bandits in Zamfara state to Birnin-Gwari general area.

“Although a significant success was made by the military, police and other security personnel to clampdown on these terrorists, their escape routes along Birnin-Gwari-Kaduna as well as Birnin-Gwari-Funtua road remain porous as all the kidnappers’ camps are active.

“We are appealing to the federal government and security agencies hierarchy to change their strategy in their fight with the armed bandits in our communities.”

When contacted, spokesman of the Kaduna State Police Command, DSP Yakubu Sabo said he would confirm and call back. He did not do so as at the time of filing this report.