The Benue State Police Command has confirmed the killing of a mobile police officer and four civilians following an attack by suspected armed bandits in Abande community, Kwande Local Government Area of the state.
The command’s spokesperson, DSP Edet Udeme, disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday in Makurdi.
Udeme said the Divisional Police Officer in Jato-Aka, Kwande LGA, received a distress report on February 3 that armed bandits had launched an assault on police personnel deployed to Abande community, as well as residents of the area.
According to her, the attack led to a gun battle during which an Assistant Superintendent of Police attached to the 13 Police Mobile Force, Makurdi, who was on special duty in the community, sustained fatal injuries.
She added that four residents of Abande community were also killed in the incident.
Udeme said following the attack, a joint team of police operatives and other security agencies had been deployed to the area to secure the community, conduct a coordinated search operation and prevent further breakdown of law and order.
“The deceased persons have been recovered and deposited at the mortuary,” she said.
The police spokesperson noted that the Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, had ordered the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Operations to proceed immediately to Jato-Aka with additional mobile police personnel and Armoured Personnel Carriers to intensify the manhunt for the attackers.
She added that the command had expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and the Abande community, assuring residents that measures were being taken to apprehend those responsible and restore peace to the area.