Village head, son, others killed in fresh Katsina attack

Bandits have invaded Kukar Babangida town in Jibia local government area of Katsina state, killing the village head, Magaji Haruna and his son.

A resident, who spoke under condition of anonymity, told our reporter that eight other people were killed in the attack which began around 10 pm Wednesday.

“Three were killed together with the son of the village, Idris Haruna, in the same house, while two were the watchmen of a company, Tinna Tech. The terrorists slaughtered one of the watchmen and and shot the other with a gun.”

“They have also set two trucks of the company and one other gulf car ablaze,” he said.

Another source from the town, who corroborated the narrative, also added that unspecified number of women were abducted during the attack.

He alleged that the planned attack was uncovered since around 5pm Wednesday when the terrorists were sighted converging around Taka-Tsaba and Yargeza villages and security forces were alerted but unfortunately nothing much was done to prevent the ugly incident.

“We were assured by the security agents that there was adequate security reinforcement to come should there be any attack, but unfortunately the bandits operated for several hours without any challenge. Only an operation vehicle came after the attackers had left,” he said.

Residents of the area believed that two notorious bandit kingpins are currently operating in and around Jibia local government area.

Barely two weeks ago, some travellers from Yangayya community were attacked and nine were killed.

That incident also took place around Kwana ukku community, which is not up to two kilometers away from Kukar Babangida.

Some residents pointed accusing fingers at those in charge of the operations of the newly formed community watch corps in the local government area.

“Frankly, the boys have the zeal and commitment to protect their communities, but unfortunately those who were collecting cartridges on their behalf for distribution are actually diverting it to enrich themselves,” one of the residents alleged.

They called on the Katsina state government to investigate the matter and do the needful in order to save the area from bandits onslaught.

When contacted, police spokesman in Katsina, ASP Abubakar Sadiq Aliyu, confirmed the incident, saying however nine people were killed.

He said details were sketchy regarding the attack but promised to share more information once available.