A police officer and four others have been killed in an assault by gunmen in Abande Community, Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State.
According to the spokesman of the Benue State Police Command, Udeme Edet, the attack happened on Tuesday.
Udeme said, “An Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) attached to 13 Police Mobile Force (PMF), Makurdi, who was on special duty at Abande Community, was fatally injured during the attack.
“The Divisional Police Officer, Jato-Aka, received a distress call that suspected armed herder bandits, in large numbers, had attacked police personnel stationed at Abande Community as well as members of the community.
“Regrettably, four members of the community also lost their lives as a result of the attack by the bandits,” the spokesman said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
Udeme said, a combined team of police operatives and other security agencies has been mobilised to the area to secure the community, conduct a thorough search, and forestall further breakdown of law and order.
He noted that the bodies of the victims have been recovered and deposited at the mortuary.
He said the Benue State Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, has dispatched the Deputy Commissioner of Police (operations) to the affected area.
He added that Emenari also commiserated with the families of the deceased and the Abande community but assured them that measures are being taken to bring the perpetrators to justice and restore peace to the area.
Benue has had several deadly attacks by non state actors.
Recently,suspected terrorists launched an attack on the Yelwata community killing no fewer than 150 persons
Worried by the incident, the federal government has filed 57 amended charges against nine suspected terrorists linked to the attack.
