Armed bandits riding on motorcycles descended on a village in Kaduna State on Saturday, killing, kidnapping and injuring residents before setting their property on fire, yesterday.
The police in Kaduna told online medium, Premium Times Sunday afternoon that two police officers were killed in the attack. They were identified as Aliyu Mohammed, an inspector, and Rabiu Abubakar, a sergeant.
The police also said another sergeant, Ibrahim Nasir, was injured alongside six residents. All the injured had been taken to the hospital while search and rescue for those feared abducted had commenced.
Witnesses who spoke with PRNigeria in the wake of the attack said the bandits entered Kakangi village in Birnin-Gwari Local Government Area at about 5:00 pm.
The attackers went on a rampage that included shooting at a police station and burning of homes and markets.
An escapee told how he was sitting by the police station when the gunmen arrived, adding that thick smoke was still billowing from the scene as of the time he escaped through a perimeter fence.
Many people were feared killed in the attack, including high profile indigenes of Kakangi that were attending a mass wedding.
Six persons with various injuries were taken to the General Hospital in Birnin-Gwari town, about 20 kilometres from Kakangi, according to head of a local security group, Abubakar Nagwari.
Kaduna police spokesperson, Yakubu Abubakar, said the police quickly responded to an emergency call from Kakangi at about 7:00 p.m. Saturday. He said police officers killed three of the attackers.
He said the police would speed up the thorough search and rescue for other victims, while also chasing some of the attackers who were at large.
Birnin-Gwari has seen frequent attacks from bandits in recent years, despite heightened security measure in the area.
Bandits are regularly suspected in the attacks, but occasional skirmishes between warring villages had been reported.
It was not immediately clear whether the attackers came from within the state, or from neighbouring Katsina or Zamfara, where hundreds have been killed by rampaging armed bandits.
