Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja

Barely 48 hours after the military troops had rescued two kidnapping victims in Kogi State, suspected gunmen invaded Ibado-Akpacha community in the state, killing two villagers, injuring another in Omala Local Government Area of the state yesterday.

Sources told THISDAY that the third victim of the attack narrowly escaped with bullet wounds to a nearby bush for safety.

It was gathered that the attack was carried out between Tuesday night and the early hours of yesterday.

It was learnt that the victims of the attack, whose names could not be ascertained, were said to be local miners who relocated to the village two years ago for coal mining activities in the community.

One of the community leaders, who pleaded anonymity, said: “The criminals also performed some robbery operations, breaking into people’s houses and collecting money, and also breaking into shops at a junction in the village, carting away consumables and assorted goods.

“We were all stuck on our beds, stuck between running out of the house to escape and remaining on our beds and praying for divine protection. We only came out this morning when we were sure that the gunmen had left. And we headed towards the direction of the gun sound to discover the victims.

“The criminals operated for one hour and eventually escaped without any response from the police and the local security personnel in the community because of the superior weapons they carried. It would have been a major disaster and heavy casualties to confront them.”

However, the Kogi State Police Command has not responded to calls by THISDAY to obtain official confirmation of the report.

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