Three persons have been killed and two injured with several others unaccounted for, in two separate attacks by suspected herdsmen in Ohimini Local Government Area of Benue State.
Chairman of Ohimini Local Government Council, Adole Gabriel , confirmed this to Journalists via phone on Sunday, maintaining that the incident occurred between Friday afternoon and Saturday night.
Adole disclosed that the attackers first invaded Elulu village on Friday, killed one person, attacked another one and collected his motorcycle before moving to Agadagba community to rustle cows before they were repelled by the community members but succeeded in shooting the owner of the cattle on his leg.
“it is not only in Agadagba community that the armed herders killed people.”He noted
Adole said the assailants first attacked Elulu village two days earlier, killed one person and attacked another before collecting his motorcycle.
The Chairman said they assailants thereafter went to Agadagba village to rustle cows, but the people repelled them and one of the villagers was shot on the leg.
After failing to rustle the cows they returned on Saturday, killing two persons at Agadagba.
“As i am talking to you, i am preparing to go to the communities to pay them condolences. So far, three lives have been lost to the attacks.
“They injured two persons, the one that they collected his bike and the one that they went to rustled his cows. Both of them are still in the hospital receiving treatment.”he added
The chairman disclosed that local security personnel, in collaboration with the police, have been deployed to the affected areas to avert further attacks.
According to him, normalcy is returning to the affected areas because security personnel have been deployed by governor Hyacinth Alia.
” The governor has actually mobilised me and I have also mobilised the community vigilantes, because it is only the vigilantes that can get to where they are. I can assure you that with the adequate security provided by Governor in Ohimini, we will get those.
“The vigilantes are on ground and Alia has mobilised me to also mobilise them which I have done. People are on ground now because these marauders cannot drive us out of our land”, Adole stated.
Editor: Ebuwa Omo-Osagie
