Gunmen have attacked a mining site in the Kuru community, Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, killing seven people and wounding others on Wednesday night.
The Senior Special Assistant on Artisanal Mining to Governor Caleb Mutfwang, Emmanuel Solomon, disclosed this on Thursday.
Solomon said “I have just been informed about the attack in the Kuru community which happened yesterday night. I’m about to go to the community to see things by myself.”
He said the attack was “rather unfortunate,” coming after a string of similar attacks on miners in the area.
Solomon said “just before yesterday, in another community in Gyel, they attacked three people, but one of them escaped. Unfortunately, two died. The victims were on their way to a mining site when they were ambushed and killed,” he explained.
He recalled that two weeks ago the attackers ambushed another group of miners, murdering two and wounding one.
“The one injured is currently at Lome Hospital receiving treatment, and the one who died is my younger brother. It’s unfortunate that some people are just moving about killing innocent people in the state,” Solomon revealed, his voice heavy with grief.
According to him, the situation “requires urgent attention” and said the state government will “look into the matter so that miners can have security back‑up going forward.”
The Jos South Area Commander of the Nigerian Forest Security Service, Pam Gyang Pwajok, said he was not aware of the incident, adding that “let me find out what happened. I will get back to you.” Pwajok is still being awaited as at the time of filing this report.
The spokesperson of the Plateau State Police Command, Alabo Alfred, could not be reached immediately as his phone was switched off.
