Panic has gripped parts of Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State following a fresh wave of assaults by armed gangs reportedly loyal to the infamous bandit kingpin, Bello Turji.
The attacks, which residents describe as increasingly coordinated, have triggered a mass departure of households from remote villages, heightening fears that criminal elements are entrenching control along the porous Sokoto–Zamfara boundary.
The Sokoto State Police Command on Tuesday confirmed that two people were killed, while an unspecified number of villagers were whisked away during the latest onslaught on Bargaja community.
Police spokesperson, DSP Ahmed Rufai, said the command was awaiting comprehensive intelligence from the Divisional Police Officer in the area.
“Two persons have been confirmed dead and some others abducted, but we are still compiling the exact figures,” Rufai told reporters.
“Further details will be provided as soon as the field report is submitted.”
Residents said Bargaja had suffered attempted incursions earlier in the week before the successful raid, with many linking the renewed hostilities to Turji’s push to consolidate territory and destabilise vulnerable border settlements.
Bargaja, alongside several hamlets stretching into Zamfara, falls within a swathe of land long exploited by armed groups due to its abandoned farmlands, weak policing, and proximity to dense forest hideouts.
Despite repeated military and police deployments, villagers across Isa, Sabon Birni, and nearby districts said they are still living under constant threat.
Many accused authorities of losing control of the countryside.
Scores of displaced persons from Tidibale ward were sighted over the weekend trooping into Isa town, recounting the destruction of homes and farms.
“Bello Turji’s men have wiped out communities in Tidibale. People are running for their lives,” a fleeing resident said in a message shared with journalists.
Local leaders disclosed that of the 10 wards in Isa LGA, only a handful remain fully inhabited, while others have been reduced to ghost settlements or are effectively under bandit control.
The widening displacement, they warn, could cripple food production and force a silent humanitarian crisis if left unchecked.
Residents lamented that security forces have been unable to reclaim deserted communities, questioning why heavily armed gangs continue to operate with ease long after villagers have fled.
A security commentator, Mallam Bashar Altine, who hails from Isa, said the situation has fast deteriorated, revealing that displaced families now sleep in classrooms, unfinished buildings, and makeshift shelters in Isa town.
Others are said to have fled as far as Sabon Birni or crossed into Niger Republic for refuge.
“Turji is alive, and his activities are growing. Anyone claiming otherwise is simply not on ground,” Altine stated.
Also speaking, Professor Muazu Alhaji Shamaki of Usmanu Danfodiyo University described the mass displacements as a demographic emergency capable of reshaping the region’s social and economic fabric if security agencies fail to act decisively.
Meanwhile, the police say they are monitoring developments and will release further findings once operational officers return from the affected communities.