Bandits have threatened to attack Utouno community in Ngaski Local Government Area if the community fails to meet the bandits’ demand of N100 million.
The bandits reportedly made the demand through a letter addressed to the community leaders.
The letter reads: “this is not a joke. You must pay us N100 million. If you refuse, you will face the consequences and have no one to blame but yourselves. Even if you call soldiers, they cannot stop us.”
The group recalled that it attacked the Woro community in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State recently, where many l;ocals were reportedly killed after their warning was ignored.
Residents confirmed receipt of the letter, which they said has thrown the community into panic.
A local of Utuono, Abbas Alkali, said “they (bandits) wrote to us demanding N100 million from our community. Everyone is now living in fear because of the threat to attack us if we fail to meet their demand.
“The matter has been reported to the local government chairman, and I learnt that the state government and security agencies are taking measures to address the threat.
A tailor in the community, Sa’ad Suleiman, said they are deeply worried about the development.
“The letter was not addressed to any cleric; it was addressed to the community leaders. It is unfortunate that people are becoming apprehensive because of this threat, especially during this period of Ramadan.”
Also, a community leader, Ibrahim Bello, said the residents are not taking the threat lightly because they believe the bandits are serious about carrying it out.
“They warned us to take their plan to attack our community seriously. We believe they may come as they said, but we have nowhere else to go. We appeal to the government to deploy soldiers to protect us.”
Spokesperson of the State Governor, Ahmed Idris, who confirmed the letter, said the state government was working to prevent any possible attack.
“I just spoke with the Director of Security. He confirmed the information and said security personnel have been deployed to the area,” he said, adding that the government is not treating the threat lightly.
“The government, in collaboration with security agencies, has deployed personnel to the area, including air surveillance.
“The state government is not compromising on the security of the state. His Excellency has been proactive on security matters, and this situation will not be an exception,” he said.
It was learnt that security has been beefed up around the community and neighbouring settlements, while residents remain on high alert amid fears of a possible attack.
