Bandits kill army officer, 5 others in Zamfara, lose 11 members

Fresh attacks by bandits in Kabasa village, Magami district of Gusau Local Government Area of Zamfara State, have led to the death of about eight people and 11 bandits.

A source said the bandits arrived in the village on motorcycles in their dozens around 4.30 pm on Tuesday and shot sporadically at anything on sight. But the villagers engaged the bandits in a fierce fire for fire which lasted more than three hours before troops stationed at Magami arrived.

The source said the attack could be linked to an earlier killing of many bandits who attempted to invade the village some weeks back.

The source added that three soldiers and five villagers lost their lives during the battle.

“It is pathetic because I think one of the soldiers killed was a Major,” he said.

Another source said he saw the bandits conveying more than 11 of their members killed during the encounter.

“I was returning from my farm when I started hearing gunshots. From where I was hiding, I could hear the sounds of the gun fires between the military and the bandits and suddenly after about two hours, I started seeing the bandits returning from the village having been overpowered by military firepower. I saw 11 dead bodies being ferried away by the bandits on motorcycles,” he said.

In a reaction, the Zamfara State government, in a statement by Commissioner of Information, Alhaji Ibrahim Magaji Dosara, said it had directed security agencies to carry out a full investigation into the incident and report back for action.