DETAILS of the early morning mayhem in Dogon Dawa village, Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State came to the fore on Monday with investigators confirming that robbers earlier dislodged from Katsina and Zamfara states perpetrated the massacre which left 20 persons dead.

  It was confirmed that residents of Dogon Dawa village had been confronting armed robbery attacks in recent times, which informed the reactivation of the vigilance group.

 Sources in Abuja confirmed that investigations by security agents had confirmed that robbers earlier dislodged from Zamfara and Katsina states had found their way into Kaduna and were responsible for series of attacks on the Dogon Dawa community.

 Sources said that the robbers, who were disturbing the Dansadau community in Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State, were dislodged through the efforts of the Joint Operation funded by the Katsina and Zamfara state governments.

 The robbers were said to have relocated to parts of Kaduna and were said to be responsible for the Sunday attack.

 “The series of attacks by robbers, especially in Maru Local Government in Zamfara State informed the setting up of joint operation by Zamfara and Katsina state governments and this led to the displacement of many armed robbers from the two states to some parts of Kaduna State,” a source said.

 It was learnt that the attack by robbers took off from the residence of the village head where the village head, named as Alhaji Ahmad Aliyu; his son, Bashir and 13 others were said to have been killed.

 It was learnt that nine other persons who were coming back from a prayer session at a mosque were also killed for standing on the robbers’ getaway route.

 It was also confirmed that the robbers had stormed the village to rescue four of their colleagues who were tied to the stakes at the home of the village head. They were said to have been able to rescue two of them before the vigilance group and the village head rose to resist them.

 A source described the situation thus: “As a result of several robbery attacks in  Birnin Gwari Local Government area, residents of Dogon Dawa revitalised the vigilance group headed by the late village head. On information, the team went to a nearby village to arrest some boys who recently came to rob in their village.

 “The robbers, who perpetrated the Sunday attack, actually went to Dogon Dawa to rescue four of their arrested members who were tied down in the house of the village head. They were able to free two of their colleagues before the village head and other vigilance members came out to prevent them.

 “In the ensuing gun battle, the village head, one of his sons and 13 others were killed. Nine others, who were returning from the village mosque were also killed. No fewer than 15 other persons sustained different degrees of injuries.”

 Meanwhile, Governor Patrick Yakowa, on Monday, undertook an assessment tour of the Dogom Dawa community.

 He visited the house of late head of the vigilance group, Makama Ahmad Aliyu, who was killed, amongst others, when the criminals entered his house.

 The governor, who was already in Abuja on his way out of the country, cancelled his trip and returned to the state.

 He was accompanied by the General Officer Commanding 1 Mechanised Division, General Garba Wahab; the state Director of State Security Services (SSS), Mr Zamba; Commissioner of Police, Olufemi Adenaike; sector commander, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), other senior security officers and the member representing Birnin Gwari, Aliyu Balarebe Jigo.

 The Emir of Birnin Gwari, Alhaji Zubairu Jibril Maigwari, received them at the home of the late Makama and narrated to the governor how the people were killed by the gunmen.

 The emir assured the governor that with proper collaboration between the vigilance members of the community and the security officers, the gunmen could be rounded up.

 Governor Yakowa said the state would ensure it rounded up those behind the dastardly act.

 According to the governor, the need to further improve on the security situation in the state influenced the decision to buy 40 more additional operational vehicles for the state security outfit, Operation Yaki.

 Five people who left the South-West region for Maiduguri to purchase rams for the coming Ileya festival fell victim of the attack of the Islamic sect on Friday.

 Some people, led by a former member of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Lukman Adigun, had gone to Maiduguri to purchase rams to be sold for the festival when the tragedy occurred.

 It was only Adigun, however, who lived to tell the story, as those who accompanied him on the trip from Lagos were slaughtered by members of the Boko Haram.

 Adigun, who spoke with the Nigerian Tribune in the house of one of his friends in Ibadan, where he was recovering from shock, narrated how the incident occurred.

 “We left Ibadan on Wednesday at about 12.00 a.m and got to Damaturu on Friday morning. There was curfew in Potiskum. So, we slept there. We arrived Maiduguri at about 9.00 a.m.

 “My boy, Abdullai Fasasi, went to Ngom in Marfa Local Government Area, to collect money from the bank. We were in the market haggling for the rams we wanted to buy at around 1.28 p.m when we heard gunshots.

 “It was heavy. I ran away and believed my friend, Lukman Akintemi and the rest of my boys had also escaped. We didn’t know that the assailants were beside them as they were trading.

 He, however, told us that the parents of his assistant, Abdullahi, rejected the idea that his remains be brought to their house in Sango. They were said to have requested that the boy be buried in Maidiguri.

 “We buried him at the cemetery on University of Maiduguri road. The other man, Akinyemi, was buried on Sunday in Ibadan. Another victim is from Lagos. In all, we lost five ram traders.”

 The divisional police officer of Marfa, where the incident was reported, Shansudeen Yusuf, could not be reached at the time of filing this report, as he did not pick calls put through to his phone.

Source: Tribune