Armed bandits, numbering over 100, raided three communities in Munya Local Government Area of Niger State, k!lling scores of villagers and rustling 200 cattle.
The communities invaded by the bandits on Tuesday, May 27, 2025 include Zagzaga, Chibani, and Kuchi.
An unspecified number of villagers, including women, were k!lled in the attack as the gunmen moved from one community to another without resistance.
Houses were burnt and foodstuffs looted by the gunmen, who operated between 4:00 pm and 7:00 pm as some villagers scrambled for safety.
According to our source, one of the bandits died in Kuchi, and nobody knows the cause of his d3ath. The body was abandoned by his colleagues.
A camp belonging to the Joint Security Taskforce was set ablaze in Kuchi community by the rampaging gunmen.
Members of the Joint Security Taskforce abandoned the camp and took to their heels when they were informed of the number of the bandits.
It was further gathered that the bandits had assembled at Kusasu community in Shiroro Local Government Area, a border community with Munya Local Government, before the attack, and a top government official was informed of their movement
“We raised the alarm through one of our contacts in Minna to help us inform the authorities of the movement of the bandits, but nothing was done. The villagers saw them moving and assembled in Kusasu before the attack,” a source told Sun Newspaper.
“They were there in the bush for over five hours before carrying out the attacks; the people saw them, but they were many in number and were riding on motorcycles.”
The Commissioner for Homeland Security, Maj-General Bello Abdullahi Mohammed (rtd), said he was yet to receive the report of the attack but admitted that there was an incident of bandit attack in the area
Meanwhile, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Communication, Media and Strategy, Hon. Jonathan Vatsa, condemned the attack, describing it as “barbaric, wicked and inhuman.”
He expressed regret that despite the efforts of the government to address the challenge of insecurity in parts of the state, “these enemies of the people have continued to carry out relentless attacks on innocent villagers.”
Vatsa assured that the government will not relent until the war against all forms of security challenges is addressed to pave the way for meaningful development, stressing that the activities of local informants have frustrated all efforts of the government in bringing the situation under control.
