Details of the death toll in the attack launched on Ganye local government area of Adamawa State on Friday evening emerged yesterday: 25 persons were confirmed killed. The victims included Mr Adiel Bilae, a former commissioner for health during the administration of erstwhile governor BoniHaruna; the chief prison warder of Ganye Prison; and the proprietor of Aishaka Joint popularly known as I.K Joint (beer parlour) alongside his wife.
They were killed during attacks by suspected members of the JamaatulAhlisssunaLiddaawatiWal Jihad also known as Boko Haram.
Also yesterday, suspected terrorists struck at two locations in Kano killing two persons with explosives.
The first explosion occurred at Hotoro area, close to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) mega station. One of the victims of the blasts was identified as a petrol hawker while there were no details on the second victim. There were no details on the second bomb blast. The police and military authorities declined to speak on the attacks.
A police officer attached to the Adamawa State police command’s Special Anti-robbery Squad (SARS) simply named as ASP Idris escaped death by a whisker following an attempt on his life by unknown gunmen in Yola on Friday.
Idris was a close ally of the former commander of SARS, Mohammed Ali, who was killed in Yola by gunmen two years ago. The state police command’s public relations officer, DSP Mohammed Ibrahim, confirmed the attack on Ganye, saying that a detachment of the military and police had been dispatched to the area to restore law and order in the town.
Earlier, the comptroller of prisons in Adamawa State, Mr. Andrew Barka, had confirmed the attack on Ganye Prison but declined to give further details.
Ganye has come under intense attacks in recent times, which made the state government include it among local government areas in which the operations of commercial motorcycle operators commonly known as Achaba riders were outlawed
An eyewitness of the attack told LEADERSHIP Sunday that the gunmen, who stormed the area in a commando-like manner, overran the divisional police station, the prison headquarters, an old-generation bank and a Catholic church all located in the heart of the town.
The gunmen also attacked relaxation joints where the casualty level was very high.
According to the eyewitness, the gunmen first struck at the Ganye divisional police station, which they set ablaze before proceeding to the prisons where the inmates were freed and the building burnt.
At the old-generation bank, the attackers reportedly used improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to pull down parts of the building before gaining entrance into the banking hall and the strong room.
As at the time of filing this report, LEADERSHIP Sunday could not establish the amount of money carted away from the bank but eyewitnesses said the amount runs into millions as wrappers of various denominations littered the entire premises of the bank.
Almost all the hotels and other relaxation joints in the town were ransacked and set ablaze as fun seekers and other residents ran for safety.
As to the Kano incident, Premium Times quoted a reporter as saying, “We are yet to get details of the explosion, but sources in the area said that it was from a car, which driver refused to stop for search at a military search point.”
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