Four people were declared dead by the Katsina State Police Command after a stampede broke out during the yearly Ramadan alms distribution at Katsina State’s Kofar Guga Quarters.
Abubakar Aliyu, the command’s Police Public Relations Officer, stated in a statement released on Sunday that the terrible occurrence happened on February 26 at around 9 p.m.
The statement claims that a distress call of a sizable throng that had assembled at the home of benefactor Alhaji Dahiru Usman Sarki, situated in Kofar Guga Quarters, was received by Katsina’s central police station.
“The Katsina State Police Command regrets to report a stampede incident that occurred during the distribution of annual Ramadan alms at Kofar Guga Quarters, resulting in several people sustaining injuries,” the statement read.
“On the 26th of February, 2026, at about 9pm, a distress call was received at the Central Police Station in Katsina about a large crowd gathered at the residence of one Alh. Dahiru Usman Sarki, a philanthropist, situated at Kofar Guga Quarters, Katsina, resulting in a stampede incident,” the statement partly read.
Aliyu stated that officers were immediately deployed to the scene upon receipt of the report.
“Upon receipt of the report, promptly, a team of policemen responded to the scene. The rescuers rushed the victims to the nearest hospital for medical attention. Unfortunately, four of the injured later succumbed to their injuries,” the command stated.
Bello Shehu, the state’s commissioner of police, sent his sympathies to the relatives of the deceased and wished the injured a speedy recovery while directing additional research and the necessary steps to stop similar incidents in the future.
In order to guarantee appropriate security arrangements, the command also urged people and organizations preparing to distribute alms or host similar activities to notify the police in advance.
“The command calls on individuals who wish to distribute alms to members of the public to notify the command for adequate security coverage so as to ensure safety of lives and property and orderliness during such events to prevent similar incidents in the future.
“Further development will be communicated in due course as the investigation proceeds,” the statement concluded.
