SUSPECTED HERDSMEN BEHEAD FARMER IN BENUE, SPARK FEARS AMONG IDPs IN UIKPAM COMMUNITY
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Tension has gripped Uikpam community in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State following the gruesome murder and beheading of a middle-aged farmer, Gabriel Vandefan, by suspected armed herdsmen.
Sources from the area revealed that Vandefan was killed on Thursday while harvesting millet from his farm, located just a short distance from his home. According to residents, his killers not only beheaded him but also chopped off one of his hands and fled with it.
The incident has sent shockwaves across the community, which is home to a large population of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who were previously forced out of their ancestral homes by similar attacks.
A resident identified as James narrated the tragic event. “He went to harvest millet around 12 noon. He brought home the first batch and returned to the farm to collect the remaining bags. When he didn’t return after several hours, his family became worried and went searching for him. Sadly, they found his lifeless, mutilated body in the farm,” he recounted.
James added that the latest killing has heightened fear and uncertainty in Uikpam, especially among displaced residents. “This is a community where people already move to Daudu at night to sleep out of fear. Now, we’re even more terrified. Uikpam is the only community in the entire Mbabai Council Ward that still has people living in it — the rest are deserted due to herdsmen attacks.”
The killing occurred just days after the community was rattled by the sound of gunshots near the market square, which caused panic and forced both locals and IDPs to flee for safety.
As of the time of this report, the Benue State Police Command said it had not received any official briefing on the incident. The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Udeme Edet, stated, “I am yet to receive any report on the incident.”
The brutal killing has once again drawn attention to the fragile security situation in Guma LGA, a flashpoint of herdsmen-farmer conflicts, and underscored the growing humanitarian crisis faced by displaced communities in Benue State.
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