Gunmen suspected to be bandits have killed a bystander and abducted three passengers travelling in an 18-seater bus along the Okene–Lokoja road.
The incident, according to sources, occurred last Saturday at about 3:00 p.m. in Aku village, Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State.
The Guardian learnt that the Toyota bus (registration number Benue DAP 325 LG) was in transit when the attackers struck, forcing the vehicle to stop.
“Luckily for the passengers, a patrol team of the Kogi State Vigilante Group intercepted the attack, and an exchange of gunfire ensued,” a source said.
The gunmen, however, fled into the bush with three passengers, while the driver and three others were rescued by the vigilantes.
Controller-General of the Kogi State Vigilante Service, Ibrahim Omeiza Sani (Rtd.), who witnessed the incident, confirmed that his men are already on the trail of the gunmen to rescue the abducted victims.
Sani commended the courage of his operatives and assured that criminals would not be allowed to operate freely in the state.
Efforts to obtain confirmation from the Kogi State Police Command were unsuccessful, as the command’s spokesperson, SP William Ovye, could not be reached at the time of filing this report.
