Bandits Kill One, Abduct 16 in Kaduna

John Shiklam in Kaduna

One person has been killed while 26 others have been abducted by bandits in Kurmin Sata and Udawa communities in Chikun Local Government Area (LGA), Kaduna State.

A member of the vigilante group in Kurmin Sata, a community in the local council, confirmed the incident, saying the attack took place around 12:30am yesterday.

He said about 20 people were initially abducted, but four of them escaped and the bandits went with 16 people.

He said among those abducted were the village head, some community leaders as well as women and children.

According to him, the bandits were shooting and a bullet hit one of the residents in his house and he died on the spot.

In Udawa, another community in the local council, the bandits were said to have abducted 10 farmers who were working on their farms.

A resident of the community, who pleaded anonymity, said the incident happened on Friday in the afternoon.

He said the community had been under constant attack by bandits, adding that “going to the farm or going to fetch firewood is very risky now.”

He said the bandits “are camped at the border between Niger and Kaduna States.”

He said since the incident, nobody had gone to the farm for fear of being killed or abducted.

He said residents of the community “face imminent hunger if they can’t go to their farms.”

The spokesman of Kaduna State Police Command, Mohammad Jalige did not respond to telephone calls when contacted.