Palpable tension has arisen following reports that hundreds of bandits from Zamfara have moved into locations around Safana and Batsari Local Government Areas of Katsina State.
The criminals led by a notorious bandit, Dan-Karami, were escaping from military onslaught in Zamfara, villagers said.
They were said to have moved into Tsaskiya, Runka, Gora, Labo and other communities in the two local government areas.
Locals said the terrorists have teamed up with another notorious bandit, Usman Moɗi-Moɗi, who has been terrorising residents of the area.
The heavily armed bandits are in large numbers and are moving with many herds of cattle, witnesses revealed.
“About a thousand of them who came on about 300 motorcycles spent Saturday night in Labo village,” a reliable source told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He added that the terrorists were spread in at least five villages on the fringes of Rugu forest between Safana and Batsari as well as part of Zamfara.
The source however said what was not clear was whether the bandits were in transit or setting up a new base in the area.
The villagers appealed to the military and Katsina State Government to respond promptly and deny the terrorists any space to operate.
Dankarami and his gang were known for raiding villages and towns in Zamfara and attacking security personnel.
A community leader told NAN on condition of anonymity that some of the villagers have started relocating to avoid being caught up in the impending disaster.
He urged the military to deploy its land and air assets to decimate the terrorists before they wreck more havoc.
“If nothing is done immediately, these terrorists will pose a serious security threat to many surrounding local government areas, including the state capital.
“There are many of them and they are heavily armed. Government should respond with decisive fire power to save the people,” he added.
Similarly, a resident of Runka said: “From last week, these bandits were seen clearing bushes to make shelters, which means, they want to be here permanently.
“We heard that Dan-Karami came to Usman Modi-Modi some days ago, and Modi-Modi gave him weapons. This means they will work together to continue to perpetrate their criminal activities in those areas.
“Dankarami also came with dangerous weapons; the locals are telling us that they have never seen bandits in large numbers and the type of weapons they have. They are widening their base in the area.”
He also urged government and security agencies to hasten measures to prevent the terrorists from taking over the area.
When contacted, Ibrahim Ahmad-Katsina, Special Adviser on Security to Governor Aminu Masari said only the security forces could comment on the matter.
However, the spokesman of the Police Command in the state, CSP Gambo Isah, said that they were investigating the veracity of the information.
“There is such rumour of the ongoing onslaught in the military operations and the police in Zamfara forcing some terrorists to relocate to some parts of the state.
“Here in Katsina, the security forces, particularly the Army, Nigerian Air Force and the Police have taken note of that and are making investigations to ascertain its genuineness and take appropriate action,” he said.
(NAN)
