Residents of Garam, a border community between Niger State and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), were thrown into panic when a large group of armed bandits invaded the village on motorcycles.
The assailants, numbering over a hundred, brandished AK-47 rifles, swords, and arrows, wearing military camouflage and combat trousers.
Eyewitnesses report that the attackers spent several minutes openly displaying their weapons in the community.
According to a witness, the invasion occurred on Monday afternoon when the bandits, riding more than 40 motorcycles with three individuals on each, entered Garam in broad daylight.
The sheer audacity of the attack caused residents to flee for their lives, uncertain of what might happen next.
Another witness described the scene, telling Daily Trust, “I saw people running when the bandits arrived. I also peeped where I was hiding, and I saw some of them using scarves to cover their faces while some used masks. Some of them wore combat trousers.”
The following day, the bandits struck again, this time invading homes and terrorizing the community to kidnap people.
The attacks reportedly began around 10:30 p.m., targeting shops and houses. Residents, still reeling from a previous attack on January 2, had hesitantly returned to their homes after two weeks of relative peace, only to face renewed violence.
A resident recounted a harrowing experience, “They attempted to break into our compound around 12:30 a.m. We didn’t even know what to do. While they continued hitting the padlock we used to lock the gate, we were motionless and prayed silently because there was no one to help.”
Despite the presence of soldiers in the area, the residents felt abandoned during the critical moments of the attack. The bandits managed to target a Hausa settlement, where scores of people were kidnapped.
“One Nupe woman, whose husband is a driver, was kidnapped alongside her two children. But because the woman had a chronic ulcer and she had been sick for some time now, she was later abandoned.
“They tied the woman and the two children to the tree. It was herders that saw them in the bush that set them free and also alerted the soldiers who brought them back,” another resident said.
