Gunmen on Saturday night attacked and killed three people returning from a burial in Sati-Ikov Council Ward of Ushongo Local Government Area of Benue State.
Residents who talked with journalists on Sunday said the attackers targeted mourners near the village.
One of the villagers, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation from local militias, stated, “Some mourners coming from a burial were attacked near our community, Sati-Ikov, on Saturday night by local militias.
“Three of them were killed, and two others, a male and a female, were kidnapped.”
Simon Gabo, the member for Ushongo Constituency in the Benue State House of Assembly, confirmed the occurrence on Sunday and denounced the activities of local militias in the area.
He claimed that local militias had transformed his neighborhood into a battlefield during the last two weeks, resulting in the deaths of several people.
He named those deceased as Bem Msughter from Mbakyombo, Daav-Ikov; Aondo Chia from Mbamegh, Daav-Ikov; and Sunday Terwase from Mbakyor, Daav-Ikov.
He further said that two other people returning from the burial—Aondongu Amos of Mbanyion, a POS operator at Sati-Ikov, and Mrs. Arinze, an Igbo patent medicine seller at Sati-Ikov—were kidnapped.
Gabo, the State House of Assembly’s Deputy Majority Chief Whip, alleged three individuals were killed in the community two weeks ago.
He said, “I received a call from my people today (Sunday) at about 4 am that yesterday (Saturday) night, they went for a burial, and on their way back, they ran into armed men.
“The armed men shot and killed three of them and collected their bags. They also robbed some residents there and kidnapped two people. The victims were all young men.
“Apart from that, we have had one or two such incidents every other week.”
Gabo claimed that the armed men would frequently cross the river from Katsina-Ala Local Government Area to Ushongo to undertake attacks.
“So they cross from there to our side, attack, and return to their side. It is a mountainous area with large forests,” the deputy majority chief whip said.
He further stated that he had reported the incident to the police, noting that the divisional police officer had dispatched security men to the village on Sunday morning.
Meanwhile, DSP Udeme Edet, spokeswoman for the Benue State Police Command, was unable to be reached for comment because her phone rang at the time of publishing this story.
The recent incident has heightened citizens’ dread amid escalating insecurity throughout the state.
