No fewer than 13 persons have been killed after bandits invaded a wedding party in Kahir village, located in Kagarko Local Government Area of Kaduna State, late Sunday night.
themomentng understands that the assailants also abducted an unspecified number of guests during the raid, which threw the entire community into panic.
A resident of Kagarko, Shehu Bala, who confirmed the incident to newsmen via telephone on Monday, said the attack occurred at about 11:47 pm.
According to him, the bandits, armed with AK-47 rifles, stormed the wedding venue in large numbers and opened fire on guests inside the hall.
He added that several victims who sustained gunshot injuries were rushed to Kagarko General Hospital, while two others with severe injuries were referred to Kaduna for further treatment.
“In fact, there are two of my friends who were inside the hall that also sustained bullet injuries during the attack,” he said.
“But one cannot ascertain the number of those that were kidnapped because of the sporadic shootings.”
A community leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed the attack and provided the names of some of those killed.
He identified the victims as Bako Danjuma, Williams Luka, Peter Williams, Joseph Yakubu, Victor Peter, John Dan Asabe, Angulu Markus, Maikano Aribi, Douglas John, Ado Yakubu, Zaphaniah Alhaji, Joseph Kaddah, and Francis Unguwa Doya.
The leader added that the assailants operated unchallenged for nearly an hour, during which they also looted shops, carting away food items, provisions, and drugs from a local chemist.
Describing the incident, the community leader said residents were forced to flee into nearby bushes to escape the indiscriminate shooting.
“In fact, the entire people of the community were thrown into pandemonium because of the sporadic shooting by the bandits that Sunday night, to the extent some people had to flee into the bush,” he said.
He noted that the victims had since been buried, while no contact had yet been established with the abductors.
A police source at the Kagarko Division confirmed the incident, including the abduction of several persons, but said the exact number of those kidnapped was yet to be determined.
Also reacting, the spokesperson for the Kaduna State Police Command, Hassan Mansur, said the command was still gathering details.
“The command is yet to get details of the incident that happened in Kahir community, but a comprehensive report on the incident will be made available after getting details of the incident,” Daily Trust quoted Mansur saying.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe, alongside Senator Sani Musa, reportedly visited injured victims receiving treatment at the hospital in Kagarko.
