Bandits kill one, abduct 30 travellers on Kaduna-Zaria road

• Police shot two gunmen dead in Kaduna, recover arms, ammunition
• Lalong, Wase condemn attack in Plateau
• Security operatives disperse protesters in Katsina
• Bello sympathises with victims of bandits attack in Niger communities

One traveller has been reported killed and over 30 others abducted along Kaduna-Zaria Road by bandits who blocked the highway on Monday night.

The bandits were said to have blocked the road around Kofar Gayon, just few kilometres away from the city of Zaria and operated for about three hours.

Similarly, unverified reports stated that bandits yesterday attacked motorists along Kaduna-Abuja road and killed two travellers.

The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Mohammad Jalige, who could not confirm the incident to The Guardian when a telephone call was put through to his phone, said: “I will get back to you.”

MEANWHILE, police operatives in Kaduna have shot dead two bandits during a routine patrol, as they recovered arms and ammunition from the kidnappers.

A statement by the police spokesman, ASP Jalige, said: “The encounter, which resulted into a heavy gun duel saw the police operatives having the last laugh.

“Having applied gallantry and firing precision that successfully neutralised two bandits, they recovered an AK-47 rifle loaded with 10 rounds of 7.62 X 39mm live ammunition and an operational motorcycle.”

IN another development, Governor Simon Bako Lalong of Plateau State has commended security forces for their swift response to the attack on Pinau town, which left some persons dead and others injured.

The governor, in a statement yesterday by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Dr. Makut Simon Macham, warned that the Plateau State government would not allow criminal elements to hibernate in any part of the state with a view to terrorising innocent citizens.

This is coming on the heels of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase’s reaction, who fumed and condemned the attack.

In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Umar Muhammad Puma, Wase described the attack as inhuman, senseless and unwarranted.

HOWEVER, security operatives of the Nigeria Police Force and Department of State Services (DSS), yesterday, in Katsina, dispersed a crowd of protesters that had gathered to express displeasure over security challenges bedeviling the state and other parts of the country.

The protest, organised by members of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), also saw some of the organisers whisked away to the state police command, where they were said to have been held for hours.

THE Niger State Governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, has paid sympathy visits to communities affected by bandits attacks in Mashegu Local Council, and called on the people to be vigilant and observant of the activities in their neighbourhood.

Bello noted that his visit was aimed at obtaining first-hand information on the incidents to enable the state government re-strategise and plan on how to prevent reoccurrence.

He stressed the need for the affected communities to make peace, and be on the watch out for people with questionable characters in their midst, adding that there cannot be a successful attack without an insider.

Chairman of the council, Alhaji Alhassan Isah Mazakuka, disclosed that 17 persons were killed, 19 abducted and eight sustained various degrees of injuries at Ba’ari attack, while praying in the mosque.