BANDIT ATTACK LEAVES TWO DEAD, RESIDENTS FLEE SOKOTO COMMUNITY
Read Time:1 Minute, 33 Second
By: Balogun Ibrahim
At least two people have been killed and several residents displaced following a fresh bandit attack on Bargaja town in Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State in the early hours of Sunday.
Local sources said the assailants invaded the community around 1:30 a.m., causing panic among residents who fled to safer locations, including Sokoto metropolis and nearby communities.
A security analyst, Bashiru Altine Giyawa, who confirmed the incident, noted that Bargaja had been among the few communities in the area that consistently resisted attacks by fighters loyal to notorious bandit leader Bello Turji.
He added that local vigilantes confronted the attackers in a gun duel while attempting to repel the invasion.
“The vigilante group engaged the bandits in a fierce gunfight, during which two vigilantes tragically lost their lives,” Altine said.
The deceased were identified as Umaru Biri and Garba Mumminu, who reportedly succumbed to gunshot injuries sustained during the attack.
Residents reported that several bandits were also killed during the clash, but their bodies were allegedly removed by fellow fighters and taken to nearby forest hideouts.
Eyewitnesses described the situation in Bargaja, in eastern Sokoto State, as tense, saying that repeated attacks linked to Bello Turji’s network have caused multiple killings and widespread displacement in the area.
Our correspondent observed groups of displaced residents—mostly women and children—boarding vehicles and leaving the town with their belongings, amid fears that authorities were not adequately addressing the worsening insecurity.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Nigeria Police Force in Kebbi State, DSP Ahmed Rufai, said the command had seen a video circulating on social media about the incident.
He added that the police were “investigating the situation to ascertain the accurate details of what transpired” and assured that security agencies were working to protect citizens and restore calm in the affected communities.
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0