Gunmen have attacked communities in both Plateau and Kogi States killing eight people both on Sunday and Monday in two separate attacks.
In plateau state, two persons were killed on Monday when gunmen stormed the NTV community in Bokkos Local Government Area of the state.
The killings provoked the locals who blocked the Bokkos-Barkim Ladi road on Monday in protest, causing gridlock on the busy highway as motorists were stranded on the road for hours.
The spokesperson for the Plateau state Police Command, Alabo Alfred, who promised to get back on the killings was yet to do so as at the time of filing this report.
Similarly, six people were killed on Sunday when gunmen invaded Akpanyan Community in the Igala Mela Odolu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
Locals who witnessed the incidence revealed the victims were killed at the boundary of Kogi and Enugu States.
According to them, bandits, numbering more than 30, stormed the area in buses and started shooting sporadically in the town, making residents to scamper for safety.
Vigilantes immediately confronted in a gun battle, in the process, six persons, among whom were members of the invading hoodlums were killed.
Locals said the hoodlums managed to carry away two dead bodies of their members while retreating in a hurry to their state.
The Kogi State government said the invaders came from other states to terrorise the Akpanya community, adding that they have crossed the red line of the state, as such, they would be confronted with heavy hands of the state.
Governor Yahaya Bello”s Security Adviser Commodore Jerry Omodara (retd.),, said the combined forces of security agents and the local vigilantes repelled the attack of the hoodlums from the neighbouring state.
He said Governor Bello had ordered a complete overhaul of the security of the area to ward off future attack of the outlawed group who takes delight in terrorising the people of Kogi in that area.
He said “The group came back to Akpanya community on Sunday to raid our people again. Our security agents and other stakeholders, including vigilantes, confronted them. They suffered heavy casualties. We lost a vigilante in the process,” said Omodara.
He said the state governor had advised the people of the area to remain calm, assuring that everything was being put in place for a lasting solution to cross border raid in the flank of the area.
