An unconfirmed number of travellers on Wednesday were confirmed dead after a vehicle conveying them ran over explosives planted along the Dansadau-Gusau Road in the Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
An anonymous source told Daily Trust that the explosives were planted by some bandits after the completion of community work on the road.
The source, a resident of Yar Tasha village, narrated, “We recently conducted community work on the road and the bandits used that opportunity to plant the device at one of the spots.
“The victims were rushed to Dansadau General Hospital and nobody can ascertain whether they are dead or alive for now.
“Security personnel comprising soldiers and police have been deployed to the scene of the incident.
“It appears that the bandits in Zamfara State have developed a new strategy of operation, especially in this Dansadau axis.
“This is the second time they would plant an explosive device in this area within a week. They planted one on Sunday.
“Government should take decisive measures to stop this trend otherwise, travelling by road will now be a difficult thing among the people of the state.
“The security personnel and communities should be vigilant and always keep an eye on them. This is a terrible method deployed by the bandits and it needs to be tackled as soon as possible.”
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Confirming the incident in a statement, the Coordinator, Joint Media Coordination Centre, Joint Task Force North West Operation Fansar Yamma, Lit. Col. Abubakar Abdullahi, stated, “We acknowledge the reports regarding the suspected bandits planting explosives along the Dansadau-Gusau Road, which unfortunately led to some destruction.
“The safety and security of our citizens are of paramount importance. We are currently coordinating with local law enforcement to assess the situation and ensure that those responsible do not go free.”
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer, Zamfara State Police Command, Yazid Abubakar, stated that he was yet to confirm the incident.
He also noted that he couldn’t ascertain the number of casualties and those injured.
“At this moment, I don’t have such information but I’ll call the DPO there to confirm whether the incident happened. I’ll get back to you,” he said.
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