Suspected herdsmen have killed a member of the Benue State Community Volunteer Guards (BSCVGs), as well as six villagers in a fresh attack on the Tse Fela community in Mbabuande Council Ward and Tse Akyegh in Ikaaghev Council Ward of Gwer West Local Government Area of the state, according to the State Police Command.
The police spokesperson in the state, Catherine Anene, confirmed the attack which she said occurred on Tuesday night, and claimed the life of the Ward Commander of the Tse Fela.
She added that the police had begun investigation into the attack while operatives were on the heels of the attackers.
The Chairman of the council, Andrew Ayande, who also confirmed the incident, said seven persons were killed in the attack, as the communities had been deserted.
In a statement on Thursday after an assessment of the area, Ayande said.
“I am sad because the Fulanis are on a mission to chase us away from our communities. It is just sad because these attacks are happening repeatedly,” he said.
“From what we gathered, it was more of a coordinated attack because they came from neighbouring Nasarawa State at the same time and attacked the two villages. They came shooting sporadically and anyone that could not escape was killed.
“They killed the Ward Head of BSCVGs and six others for no reason because we had no previous incidents with them. In fact, they were the ones who, few weeks back, attacked our people without reason.
“But before this latest incident, some people had noticed strange movements in the villages and raised the alarmed, which helped most of the people to flee for their lives but those that could not escape ended up being killed,” he said.
The Chairman said the two council wards had, not long ago, suffered the same fate when the marauders sacked several villages in the area, killing many and rendering hundreds of families homeless.
