The tranquility of Katapka community in Nasarawa State‘s Toto Local Government Area was shattered as bandits launched a deadly assault, resulting in the tragic deaths of three Nigerian Army personnel and two vigilant community members.
The reported occurrence, suggesting the demise of security officials, took place on a Tuesday.
On February 1, 2024, a wave of violence struck the Katapka and Okudu communities, claiming three lives and causing millions in property damage. The Nigerian Army responded promptly, deploying personnel to uphold law and order.
While military personnel worked towards restoring order in the area, Africa Today News, New York, reported that bandits launched a fatal attack, causing the deaths of three soldiers and two vigilantes.
Speaking on the incident in Lafia, the Chairman of Toto LGA, Abdullahi Aliyu-Tashas, described the killing of the soldiers as unfortunate.
He said, ‘The suspected bandits laid ambush on the military personnel who were on patrol to maintain law and order in the area and killed three of them.’
‘Katakpa community had been recently attacked, and as a result of that, the soldiers were drafted to Katakpa to maintain law and order, but they were unfortunately killed in an ambush on Tuesday afternoon.’
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Providing additional details, the council chairman explained that the state government had assumed responsibility for the issue and was actively engaged in managing the situation. Moreover, he disclosed the deployment of additional security forces to the area as a preventive measure against further disruptions to law and order.
The Bassa Cultural Development Union, expressing the concerns of an ethnic group in the area, has called on Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State to urgently identify those responsible for the recent attacks on Katakpa community in Umaisha District, Toto LGA, which resulted in tragic killings.
The call was made by the group’s chairman, Emmanuel Gbaji, in a statement released on Wednesday.
‘We, the Bassa community of Nasarawa State, have barely recovered from the shock of the attack on Okudu village when we received news of the attack on Katapka vIllage. The unfortunate event came with the loss of three lives and wanton destruction of property.’
‘We want to call on His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Nasarawa State, Engr. A.A. Sule, as the chief security officer of the state to use his good office to fish out the perpetrators of these criminal attacks so that peace can return to the Toto Local Government Area.’
‘We want to send our deep condolences to the families and relatives of the victims, and we ask God to give them the fortitude to bear their loss. We are deeply pained by their loss and we pray that God would comfort them,’ the group said.