Tension gripped residents of Anguwan Rukuba in Jos North Local Government Area on Sunday following a deadly shooting incident that left an unspecified number of youths feared dead.
Eyewitnesses said unidentified gunmen, reportedly riding a motorcycle, opened fire indiscriminately near Anguwan Rukuba junction in the evening, causing panic as residents fled for safety.
“The attackers rode past and started shooting sporadically. People were running in different directions,” a witness recounted.
In the aftermath, angry youths reportedly blocked major roads within the community in protest, heightening fears of further escalation.
As of the time of filing this report, the Commissioner of Police in Plateau State, Bassey Ewah, and the Police Public Relations Officer had yet to respond to inquiries seeking official confirmation and further details of the incident.
The latest attack comes amid a wave of insecurity in the state. Weeks earlier, no fewer than 20 security personnel and vigilantes were reportedly killed in an ambush by heavily armed bandits in Kanam Local Government Area.
In a statement issued by the Kanam Development Association and signed by its Secretary, ND Shehu Kanam, and Chairman, Garba G. Aliyu, the victims included 12 security personnel—among them two senior military officers—and eight vigilante members supporting security operations.
The association said the joint patrol team, comprising military personnel and local vigilantes, was travelling in two vehicles on a routine operation across Garga, Kyaram, and Gyambau communities when they were ambushed by hundreds of armed bandits en route to Wanka at about 2 p.m. on Friday.
Describing the killings as “deeply painful and unacceptable,” KADA noted that the victims died while defending rural communities long plagued by recurring attacks.
The group further alleged that the assailants proceeded to Kyaram community, where they looted properties worth millions of naira and rustled a significant number of cattle.
KADA warned that the violence reflects a broader pattern, noting that communities in and around Garga, Kyaram, Gyambau, and neighboring settlements along the borders of Plateau, Taraba, and Bauchi states have endured persistent attacks, kidnappings, and cattle rustling over the past several years.
