The attempt by a group of bandits to wreak havoc on two villages on Sunday and possibly abduct residents for ransom payment was foiled courtesy of the combined efforts of police and vigilantes of the affected communities.
The hoodlums had invaded Saran Gamawa and Unguwar Mata villages in Zanfara State at about 3:00 am, with the intent to kill and abduct some members of the communities when Police Tactical operatives deployed along the Gummi/Bukkuyum axis received a distress call.
It was gathered that before the arrival of the security personnel, two persons had already been abducted by the bandit terrorists.
One of the hoodlums fell to the superior firepower of the joint repellant efforts of the police and vigilantes of the affected communities, while other members of the gang retreated and escaped into the forest.
An AK-47 rifle, belonging to the gang, was recovered in the process.
Disclosing this development in a press statement, the Zamfara State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Mohammed Shehu, said: “The Police, in collaboration with the vigilante of the affected villages, mobilised forces and engaged the bandit terrorists in an extensive gun battle that lasted for hours, as a result of which, one of the bandit terrorists was fatally injured, an AK- 47 rifle, belonging to the bandits, was recovered at the scene, while many others retreated to the forest with possible various degree of gunshot wounds”
Commending the resilience of the joint operatives, the state Commissioner of Police, Ayuba N. Elkanah, however, charged them not to relent in the command’s effort to safeguard the lives and property of residents of the state.
Consequently, the CP has directed the Anka Area Commander and DPOs within Anka Area Command “to deploy reinforcement teams to complement the ongoing confidence-building patrol, aimed at averting further attacks on nearby communities and also to rescue the two kidnapped victims already abducted by the assailants before Police arrival”.
“The command, while reassuring of its commitment to the protection of lives and property in the state, calls on members of the public to cooperate with the Police and other security agencies in the ongoing effort to rid the state of bandit terrorists and other criminal elements in the state”, the statement concluded.