From Noah Ebije, Kaduna
Bandits on Sunday stormed communities in Zangon Kataf Local Government Area of Kaduna State, destroyed crops on farms, vandalised homes and carted away various mobile phones and chargers.
This was even as Troops of the Defence Headquarters Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) stationed in the Southern Kaduna general area prevented the bandits from bloody attacks on residents of the Gidan Zaki community of Zangon Kataf.
According to a statement by the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, ‘the armed bandits invaded farmlands in the village and destroyed maize crops with cutlasses.
‘The bandits went on to vandalise the home of one Mr Joseph Aboi, a resident of the village. They also damaged a nearby vehicle, before storming a phone charging shop belonging to one Benjamin Joseph and carting away phones and chargers.
‘The swift response of the troops repelled the attack early on, as the bandits retreated from the area in disarray.
‘One Angelina Francis, a resident of the village, was injured by a bullet during the sporadic shooting by the bandits. She was evacuated to a nearby medical facility for treatment.
‘Governor Nasir El-Rufai noted the reports with sadness while thanking the troops for their prompt response which halted the attack and prevented its escalation. He wished the injured resident a speedy recovery and tasked security agencies with ensuring a thorough investigation.
‘Investigations into the incident are in progress.’