Tragedy struck late Sunday night along the Adoka-Otukpo road in Benue State when suspected armed herdsmen ambushed a commercial vehicle, killing two passengers and abducting four others.
The vehicle, which was en route from Abuja to Otukpo, reportedly came under heavy gunfire around 11 p.m., resulting in the deaths of the driver and another passenger.
The sudden attack forced the vehicle off the road and into nearby bushland.
An eyewitness from the community recounted the harrowing details, “From what was told, the bus was coming from Abuja and was heading to Otukpo when they ran into an ambush by armed herdsmen who opened fire on the bus.
“They shot at a moving vehicle and killed the driver and one other passenger. The bus veered off the road and ended up in the bush.
“They came and took all the surviving passengers away, though we cannot tell the exact figure of those they took away, but from Abuja, the vehicle takes nine occupants, including the driver.”
Confirming the development, the Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, clarified that the bus had six passengers on board at the time of the incident, as some had disembarked at Adoka before the ambush occurred.
“The vehicle was coming from Abuja to Otukpo and some of the passengers actually alighted in Adoka.
“So there were six passengers remaining in the vehicle when they were intercepted along Adoka Otukpo road, two people were killed and four others were whisked away,” Ogiri stated.
He also noted that search efforts are underway to secure the release of the kidnapped victims.
Meanwhile, the Benue State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, CSP Catherine Anene, said she had not yet received an official briefing on the attack.
