At least 70 vigilante group members have been killed in an ambush by gunmen in the Bunyun community of Kanam LGA, Plateau State.
The chairman of the vigilance group in Kukawa, Aliyu Baffa, while confirming this stated that the attack occurred on Monday, July 7, at 2 pm.
He said that the massacre unfolded just one kilometer from Kukawa town, where bandits ambushed the vigilantes as they proceeded toward the government reserve forest, popularly known as ‘Madam Forest’ a known hideout.
Around 1 am, gunshots were heard, which initially led residents to suspect an armed robbery.
However, it was later discovered that the shots came from vigilantes who had arrived from Dogon Ruwan Safiyo, intending to confront bandits in their strongholds.
He stated, “But to our surprise, the vigilantes started beating innocent residents of the community, they vandalized shops and looted phones.
“They also entered people’s homes and seized over 150 phones. They seized almost 30 motorcycles from the residents, claiming they would ride them to the forest.
“They were even accusing us of hiding the bandits in the villages, we told them that we were not hiding criminals, that the criminals were in the forest, and they should follow them to the area.
“They then headed to the forest, but 20 minutes later, we started hearing gunshots from that direction, suggesting a clash between them.
“A moment later, we started seeing some vigilantes withdrawing, saying they were overwhelmed by the bandits.
So, this morning, we reported to the DPO and other security forces in the area.”
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