No fewer than 12 persons have been killed, six of them burnt alive, after suspected bandits attacked Lajinge village in Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

Residents told Daily Trust that the attackers invaded the community at about 11pm on Saturday and operated until around 3;30am on Sunday without any security intervention.

A resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said 11 of the victims died from gunshot wounds while a woman identified as Agada died after suffering severe shock during the attack.

According to him, six people were burnt alive after the gunmen surrounded a room where they had taken refuge.

“They ordered those inside to come out but they refused. The attackers then poured petrol on the room and opened fire. When those inside attempted to escape through the door, they kept shooting at them. Their bodies were left inside the burning room,” he said.

He identified those killed in the fire as the head of the household, Mallam Wauro (popularly known as Mallam Roro); his two sons, Ukasha and Mujaheed; two other relatives identified as Sufyanu and Sani Shanbami; as well as an internally displaced person (IDP) who had been taking shelter in the house.

The source added that another victim, Lawwali, was shot dead at the entrance of the same house while trying to flee, bringing the death toll in the compound alone to seven.

He said the remaining victims were shot while attempting to escape from the village. They included Yusuf and three internally displaced persons who had sought refuge in Lajinge.

Another resident, who participated in the community’s local vigilante operation on the night of the attack, said they were keeping watch near the village primary school when the gunmen struck.

“We were at the primary school guarding the village when we suddenly heard heavy gunfire. We all ran for safety and kept moving from one hiding place to another whenever the shooting came closer,” he said.

He said after overpowering the local vigilantes, the attackers moved freely through the village, going from house to house while rustling cattle and sheep.

“They stationed one of their rifles in a strategic location that kept firing while the others entered houses to steal livestock,” he said.

He added that the attackers later moved to another part of the village where they attacked Mallam Wauro’s residence, killing him and two of his sons, abducting his two wives and carting away all his cattle.

Residents said they could not immediately establish the exact number of abducted persons, explaining that although many villagers were taken away, some especially children were later released by the gunmen.

The villagers lamented that despite the attack lasting for about four hours, no security reinforcement arrived.

“The bandits stayed in our village for hours without any intervention. They even walked along the main road laughing and smoking cigarettes as if they had conquered the community,” one of the residents said.

They alleged that security personnel stationed in Unguwar Lalle and Dan Tudu communities, both located about two kilometres from Lajinge, did not respond to repeated distress calls throughout the attack.

The residents said community leaders had repeatedly appealed to the government to deploy security personnel to the area but their requests had not been granted.

They added that eight people were also killed in the community about three weeks ago.

“We are Nigerians and we have voter cards. We elected the government to protect our lives and property. We are pleading with the authorities to deploy security personnel to safeguard our communities,” one resident appealed.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ahmad Rufai, said he was not aware and was on transit and would verify the incident upon reaching his office.

However, he had yet to respond as of the time of filing this report. (Weekend Trust)