About 12 miners were reportedly killed when gunmen suspected to be Fulani militias stormed a mining site in Ratoso, Fan district of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State.

Eyewitness accounts from the community said that the incident occurred on Tuesday night as the attackers stormed the site and shot sporadically while the miners were engaged in mining activities.

Chairman of the Berom Educational and Cultural Organisation (BECO), and Secretary of the Mining Committee in Barkin Ladi, Dagallang Davott, who confirmed the incident, said many other persons are missing following the attack by gunmen as they fled in different directions.

Davott said: “There was an attack at Fan yesterday. It happened in the night but I cannot give you the exact time. The number of those missing are yet to be ascertained because the incident happened in the night.”

The BECO chairman, who condemned the incident, said that as a result of the sporadic shooting and the thickness of darkness, many of the miners caught in the barrage of gunfire ran in the direction of the gunmen. Many were killed and others sustained gunshot wounds.

Efforts to reach security operatives for more confirmation as at press time were unsuccessful.

Police Public Relations Officer SP Alfred Alabo’s phone was unreachable when our correspondent called him. (Daily Sun, excluding headline)