How Bandits Killed 17 Persons In Kajuru Village

BY SIMON REEF MUSA

The off-the road Gonar Rogo village in Kajuru Local Government Area, is less than two kilometres from Doka located on the Kaduna-Kachia road. When villagers went to bed on Monday’s night, death was far away from their minds, as they were looking forward to embrace the boredom of the lockdown order by the Kaduna State Government, following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The peace of Gonar Rogo village was later to be shattered by hail of bullets few minutes to midnight of Monday May 11, 2020.  The murderous bandits first broke into the home of a 40-year old man, Jonathan Yakubu, and grisly murdered him in cold blood. Not sparing his family members, they also slaughtered his 32-year old wife. Not satisfied with that, they hacked to death all their three children, Patience (13), Revelation (6) and Rejoice (4), thus wiping out the entire Yakubus. Relations of the Yakubus were seen sobbing beyond consolation in front of the humble home that once sheltered the slain family.

From Yakubu’s compound, trails of blood led to yet another gruesome scene of bloodbath where Mrs. Kauna Magaji and her daughter, Faith, were hacked to death with machete cuts.

Acting with precision that was carefully organised, the mindless killers, who burnt a barn belonging to a native, went to another compound where they summarily killed newly married 25-year old Mrs Saraunia Lucky, who had given birth three months ago. In the most horrific scene enacted by the criminals, they shot her dead, while her three-month old baby miraculously survived bullet shot at its skull.  The baby was later taken to a hospital where the bullet was extracted. Since the tragedy occurred, the baby has remained without milk as the shops have remained close due to the lockdown order by the Kaduna State Government.

According to the woman, who took charge of the baby after its mother was brutally murdered, the difficulties of sustaining the baby remains high, following the inability to access infant milk. Less than 12 hours after the attack, clerics from the Albarka Baptist Church, Gwari Avenue, Kaduna, came on condolence visit and took both the baby and foster mother to Kaduna for better attention and care.

Another six-year old John Paul was also murdered as several machete cuts on his head snuffed life out of him. Also butchered to death in the safety of their homes were Asanalo Magaji (32), Yayo Magaji (13), Paul Bawa (27) and his wife, Rahila (25), his wife were butchered in their homes.

Also murdered in cold blood is 60-year old Mailafia Dalhatu, who was hacked to death as he tried to escape from the murderous swords of his killers. After murdering him, they proceeded to kill his younger brother, Yaro Dalhatu (56) and wife, Mrs Saratu, in another compound. One of their granddaughters, Blessing Yari (14) was also gruesomely butchered. Also killed was a 17-year old young boy, Popular Teacher.

After the dust had settled over the besieged village, no fewer than 17 persons were butchered in cold blood, most of them in the dead of the night while sleeping.

About six people were critically injured and taken to an unnamed medical facility for needed attention. About seven cows were also rustled, while a compound belonging to Mr. Liberty Yari was razed down. However, good luck smiled on him as he was lucky to escape from the monsters of death to safety in a nearby village, Mikyali that would later become a theatre of fierce fight between the bandits and Adara natives.

The attack on Gonar Rogo was not devoid of miracles, as a woman who had come to live in the village was spared by the attackers. She was too confused and mentally unstable as she looked into the skies. She was shell-shocked to narrate her lucky escape from the black angels of death.

According to a resident, who narrated her escape from the swords of death, “She was asked to bring the money that she had received from her husband living in Lagos, but she told the bandits that she had not received any money from her husband. She later surrendered the sum of N5, 000 in her possession. They collected the money and attempted to kill her. But, there was a disagreement amongst the murderers. That turned out to be her saving grace as they walked away to another compound to unleash yet a reign of terror. Few minutes later, one of the killers would return to tear open a box belonging to her husband and took a baggy trousers and other clothes and left without harming her.

The atmosphere in the attacked town on Tuesday was thick as tension was rising around the surrounding villages. Restive youths from other surrounding villages had thronged the attacked settlement to commiserate and show solidarity to bereaved families in Gonar Rogo.

As fear-stricken residents of the attacked village were relocating to other surrounding communities for safety, Gonar Rogo was preparing for the mass burial of their fallen villagers hacked to death in the most grisly manner.

A resident of Gonar Rogo says the community has been living in peace with their Fulani neighbors for over 40 years. Strangely, their Fulani neighbors had relocated and left the area on the night before the attack.

Throughout the duration of the visit by a team of Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU) on Tuesday, there was no presence of any security personnel in the village. It was however gathered that the chairman of Kajuru Local Government Area, Mr Cafra Caino, visited the village earlier to commiserate with the mourning villagers.

Not many observers are wondering why despite the lockdown orders imposed by the Kaduna State Government as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are increasing spates of attacks on defenceless communities by murderous bandits.

Close watchers of killings in Kaduna state, especially in the southern axis, are perplexed at the inability of the authorities to rein in killers who are roaming the streets freely and sacking communities with ease despite efforts at combating them by the military.

Less than 24 hours after the attack on Gonar Rogo, two other attacks yet to be identified were also carried out on Tuesday night, with only one person killed and houses burnt. The Chairman of the Adara Development Association, Mr Dio Maisamari, confirmed receiving distress calls on the attacks. He would later call to disclose that another attack was carried out on Mikyali in the early hours of Wednesday May 13, 2020 even as the number of casualties remained uncertain as at the time of filing this report.

As the state continue to witness attacks on communities in Kaduna, one question many are asking is: Can Governor Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai stave off further attacks on the harmless people and ensure safety and succor to them? Only time shall tell.