Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) killed three suspected bandits in a gun duel on Sunday night at Adaka community in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State.
Daily Trust gathered from some members of the community that the suspected bandits had besieged Adaka, a suburb of Makurdi metropolis and were allegedly robbing the residents when the soldiers came to their rescue.
It was learnt that the soldiers had received a distress call from the villagers while on patrol around the vicinity and in a bid to repel the bandits, a gun battle ensued during which the three suspects were killed.
The community members told newsmen in Makurdi that the incident which happened around 8 pm could have been more disastrous but for the quick intervention of the troops as the bandits had allegedly already shot a man and his wife.
The Force Commander of OPWS, Major General Adeyemi Yekini, when contacted, confirmed to newsmen that his patrol team had an encounter with some armed bandits around Adaka community.
“Our troops are on top of the situation and will do everything possible with other security agencies on ground to protect the people,” he said.
Yekini then referred journalists to the Defence Headquarters Media Operations team for any other information about the matter.
