Suspected armed herdsmen have reportedly killed four Mobile Policemen and eight residents in a fresh attack on Ayilamo, Tombola Ward of Logo Local Government Area of Benue State.
Ayilamo, located along the Abinsi-Tyulen-Anyii-Wukari axis, is a farming community that has come under regular attacks by armed bandits.
A resident, Tyolumu Ugande, said armed bandits numbering more than 200 invaded Ayilamo from Alufu Road in Taraba State and advanced towards the community, shooting sporadically and setting houses on fire.
The armed bandits, who were reportedly carrying sophisticated weapons, were confronted by a detachment of Mobile Policemen deployed to Ayilamo.
Ugande said that after several hours of an exchange of gunfire, the bandits retreated, but four bodies of Mobile Policemen killed in the attack were discovered in the bush on Friday morning.
He said, “We also discovered eight bodies of residents of Ayilamo who were killed by the bandits.”
The incident was confirmed by the Secretary of the Ayilamo Security Committee, who said the community had requested reinforcement from security agencies.
A resident, James Ugah, said this was the second time in one month that Mobile Policemen deployed to Ayilamo had been killed.
“The bandits have been trying to set the whole Ayilamo ablaze for more than two years now. We called on security personnel, Benue and the federal government to help secure our land and lives.
“We learnt that the series of attacks on Ayilamo may not be unconnected with rumours that there are huge mineral deposits within and around Ayilamo,” he said.
Efforts to confirm the incident from the spokesperson of the Benue State Police Command, DSP Orchia Aondogwu, were unsuccessful as at the time of filing this report.
