Suspected assailants have shot dead a traditional ruler in Olegabulu Community of Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State.
His wife, son and two other residents in the Community were also gunned down the 4-man armed gang who struck on Thursday night.
The assailants, who arrived on two motorcycles, stormed the monarch’s residence and opened fire on him and his family members.
A dependent source said the hoodlums who rode motorcycles into the community without raising suspicion and immediately proceeded to the palace where they shot the monarch, his wife and son dead.
“The attackers were not Fulani. When they arrived, they interacted freely with people in our dialect, so no one suspected that they were enemies.
“But immediately they entered the traditional ruler’s house, they opened fire and people started running for safety.
“They operated for about 20 minutes. After attacking the monarch’s residence, they moved to a nearby house and killed two more people. One person was injured before they fled,” a witness told Daily Trust.
Both the Chairman of Agatu Local Government Area, Melvin Ejeh and the spokesperson of the Nigeria police Command in Benue State, DSP Udeme Edet, confirmed the incident.
Investigation by TheNewspad revealed that police authorities have evacuated bodies of the deceased and stepped up a joint patrol security surveillance in the area, amid tension.
