Gunmen as well as suspected cult groups, have reportedly killed over 27 people within two days Tse- Anule, Chito and Tse- Akosu communities in Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State.

It was gathered that the gang groups carried out the acts on Saturday and Sunday, November 4 and 5, 2023.

It was further gathered that at Tse- Anule, some cult boys stormed the area with motorcycles and after killing people, went and mounted roadblocks along Sankara and Ayati road and robbed unsuspecting road users for several hours unchallenged.

Sources from the area said the armed group came with different sophisticated guns and ammunition and ordered all the villagers who were relaxing at the drinking joint to lie down.

According to him, immediately the victims lied facedown, they opened fire on them, killing five persons on the spot.

“They opened fire and killed all of them. Some persons claimed that 10 persons were killed in the bloody fight while others said they counted 15 bodies.

“But it was an internal fight for supremacy among gangs and not a communal crisis. In fact the locals ran away because they feared for their lives. They feared that in the course of the reprisal, they might be affected despite being innocent.”

“Ukum has become hotbed of killings, we are all living in fear as we speak because we cannot tell who is who among our local boys,” he said.

When contacted, the Benue State Command Police Public Relations Officer, (PPRO), SP, Catherine Anene said she was yet to receive information on the incidents.

Meanwhile, the House of Assembly member for Ukum State Constituency, Hon. Ezra Nyiyongo, confirmed the killings saying government was looking into the matter with a view to address it.(Courtesy, excluding headline, Daily Sun)