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Tag: Banditry in Nigeria

  • Bandits Unleash Terror, Kill Scores in Brazen Daylight Attack on Katsina Community

    Bandits Unleash Terror, Kill Scores in Brazen Daylight Attack on Katsina Community

    Suspected bandits on Tuesday carried out a brutal and audacious daylight attack on Doma community under Tafoki Ward in Faskari Local Government Area of Katsina State, killing about 20 residents and leaving the area in ruins.

    The assailants reportedly stormed the community in the early afternoon and operated freely for hours, shooting sporadically and setting houses on fire, before withdrawing around 4:00 p.m. without resistance.

    Eyewitnesses said the attackers moved from house to house, unleashing terror on helpless residents, while several buildings were reduced to ashes in what locals described as one of the most savage assaults in recent months.

    The attack came despite a peace agreement earlier reached between the armed groups and the community, raising serious concerns over the effectiveness and credibility of such arrangements.

    Confirming the incident, the area chairman, Alhaji Surajo Aliyu-Daudawa, described the invasion as a reprisal attack and the most devastating assault on the community in the past five months.

    According to him, bodies of the victims were evacuated after the attack, while funeral prayers were scheduled to take place in Tafoki town on Wednesday morning.

    Aliyu-Daudawa lamented the scale of destruction and loss of lives, praying for divine intervention to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.

    Meanwhile, the Katsina State Police Command confirmed the attack but gave a lower casualty figure, stating that 13 people were killed by the assailants.

    In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Aliyu Abubakar, said a distress call was received at about 2:00 p.m. on February 3, 2026, reporting that armed bandits had launched an attack on Doma village in Faskari Local Government Area.

    He said operatives from the Faskari Division, working with the military and members of the Katsina State Community Watch Corps, were mobilised to the area, but the attackers fled before security forces arrived.

    “Unfortunately, the assailants had fatally shot 13 persons and escaped the scene before the arrival of the operatives,” the statement said.

    The latest attack once again underscores the persistent insecurity in rural Katsina communities, where armed groups continue to strike with impunity despite security operations and peace initiatives.

  • Insecurity: Nigerians Paid N2.3trn As Ransom In One Year — NBS Report

    Insecurity: Nigerians Paid N2.3trn As Ransom In One Year — NBS Report

    “Perhaps the most depressing aspect of the survey was the discovery that most Nigerians lack confidence in law enforcement agents as many are of the belief that police intervention would not result in meaningful action.”

    Further sign of the failing status of Nigeria as a nation state emerged yesterday as a report by the National Bureau of Statistics revealed the chronic lack of capacity of Nigeria to protect the life and property of its citizens.

    Meanwhile, Sect 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria,as amended, declares that the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.

    According to the NBS report, Nigerians paid an estimated N2.3 trillion as ransom in 12 months to secure their freedom from kidnappers.

    It was also revealed in the survey that households nationwide had an estimated 51,887,032 criminal incidents within the period under review.

    Perhaps the most depressing aspect of the survey was the discovery that most Nigerians lack confidence in law enforcement agents as many are of the belief that police intervention would not result in meaningful action.

    The federal government agency reports that these figures were realised from its 2024 Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey (CESPS), and it underscores the dangerous rate and extreme financial burden which Nigerians have to bear just to ensure their personal safety in their own country.

    The survey also revealed close correlation between poverty and violent crimes.

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    For instance, it was discovered that, with roughly 14,402,254 households, the North-West, where poverty is most prevalent in Nigeria, reported the highest household crime rates, followed by the North-Central (8,771,400) and the South-East (6,176,031).

    The survey also showed that these type of crimes were more prevalent in the rural than urban areas.

    While the crime rate in the rural areas stood at 26,526,069 discovered that the figure for the ur­ban area stood at 25,360,963 incidents.

    “In Nigeria, 4,142,174 households experienced home robbery. Less than half (36.3%) of the households who were victims of home robbery reported their experience to the police,” it was stated in the report.

    “At the individual level, 21.4 percent of Nigerians reported being victims of crime, and the most common crime was phone theft (13.8%).”

    In the robust survey that covered wide ranging aspects of crime and criminality, it was also found that about 90 percent of the victims of phone thefts reported to the police, and only 50 percent of the victims expressed satisfaction with police responses.

    “Nationwide, an estimated 1.4 million experienced sexual offences, which occurred mostly in someone else’s home (27.7%), followed by the victim’s home (22.2%).

    “Sexual offences are less likely to occur at a public transport station (0.9%), and only 22.7 percent of victims reported to the police. Public perception on safety shows that 9.6 percent of Nigerians believed they might be a victim of crime in the next 12 months.”