The Taraba State Police Command has confirmed a deadly ambush on residents of Kofai Amadu community in Takum Local Government Area of the state, leaving one person dead.
The attack reportedly occurred on Thursday around 4:00 p.m. in the community’s busy trading area where residents from different ethnic backgrounds were carrying out their daily commercial activities.
Eyewitnesses said panic broke out after gunshots suddenly ran out from a nearby bush close to the yam market, forcing traders, farmers and other residents to flee the area for safety.
Some farmers returning from nearby farmlands were said to have spotted armed men moving around a settlement located about two kilometres from the market.
Amid the chaos, residents later discovered the lifeless body of a young man bearing gunshot injuries.
Community members immediately alerted security operatives, who later arrived at the scene to restore calm and commence preliminary investigations into the incident.
Residents of the affected community have appealed to security agencies to strengthen surveillance in the area and ensure that those behind the attack are apprehended and prosecuted.
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson for the Taraba State Police Command, Victor Mshelizah, said authorities received reports of an ambush on individuals who had returned to their homes in the troubled area to retrieve personal belongings.
He disclosed that the victims were allegedly attacked by armed men suspected to be Fulani militia members.
According to him, one of the victims sustained gunshot wounds and was later confirmed dead by a medical doctor.
Mshelizah added that security personnel had since taken control of the area, noting that normalcy had been restored while investigations continued.