Suspected armed herdsmen have again attacked the community opposite the Abagana Internally Displaced People (IDP) camp in Makurdi, killing eight people.
According to reports, the killers beheaded and removed the heads of the victims, including a family of six. Eight more people were injured, with three of them in critical condition.
The attack, which occurred Thursday night after the community had retired for the night, is the second in two years to target the Abagana IDP camp, where hundreds of internally displaced people have been living since January 2018, when armed herdsmen attacked and killed 73 people in the state’s Guma and Logo local government areas.
The Special Adviser to Governor Samuel Ortom on security matters, Colonel Paul Hemba (retd), said that rescue operations by the police are underway and the search for survivors or more bodies is ongoing.
Colonel Hemba said the attack took place at about 9.00 pm on Thursday and that women and children were among those killed. Those injured have been moved to the hospital for medical care.
A message from him read, “Suspected Fulani bandits attacked Abagana opposite the IDP camp last night at about 21:00hrs. So far, eight corpses, including women and children, have been recovered, and eight others seriously injured were evacuated to the hospital for treatment. Some of the bodies were beheaded and the heads were taken away. The bushes are still being combed for more victims.”
The family killed consisted of the father, mother, and four children, while two other bodies were recovered along the way.
“A man with his wife and four children were all wiped out in the attack,” Colonel Hemba said, adding that the casualty figure may likely rise “as three other persons were shot and may not survive the injuries in the chest”.
The police have yet to comment on the attack.