Sola Ojo, Kaduna
Armed men suspected to be bandits in the early hours of Saturday, March 2, stormed Sabon Sara, Kidendan, in Giwa local government area of Kaduna State, leaving no fewer than five persons dead, with eight others surviving various degrees of gunshot wounds.
A resident of the area, identified as Umar, who claimed to have taken the injured persons to a hospital (name withheld) in Zaria, said the gunmen stormed the village at about 1:45am Saturday and launched their attack indiscriminately.
Sabon Sara is close to Dogon Dawa in Birni Gwari local government area of the state, a local government whose economic development had been crippled due to deadly activities of bandits operating between the area and Zamfara State through the Buruku forest.
According to Umar, this was the second time the village would be experiencing such an attack within seven months, “our people were attacked about seven months ago right in their farms and we lost seven persons to that attack,” he said.
Umar explained further that “The bandits came in at about 1:45am when we were still sleeping and launched their premeditated attack, killing and maiming our people.
“At the end of the attack, we recovered five dead bodies including Lawal, Umar, Lawal, Ibrahim and Tukur. The reason for the attack is not clear to us because majority of our people are farmers.
“We have taken the injured to a hospital in Zaria for treatment. Some of them were shot in the abdomen, some in the legs and some at knee. The five dead people have been buried according to Islamic rites.
“We want to appeal to the state government to come to our aid before these people sack us from our community. We are people in dare need security,” he pleaded.
Secretary to the Local Government Usman Ismai’l, who spoke on the authority of his Chairman, Abubakar Shehu Giwa, confirmed the incident via a telephone call.
According to him, “the bandits came in their numbers in early hours of today and attempted to kidnap one old woman in Sabon Sara. But unfortunately for them, people rise to defend the woman and it was in the process that they opened fire and killed about six persons and injured about nine others.
“The Chairman immediately called the police, who moved to the area. In fact, I’m aware one of the criminals was neutralised. He was also at the burial of those killed this morning…”
Meanwhile, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Yakubu Sabo, would not confirm the incident as at the time of filing this report, though promising to get back to this correspondent.