Four persons were killed by bandits who attacked Maru, Zamfara State on Thursday.
The Emir of Maru, Abubakar Maigari, was able to flee when the bandits broke into his palace, according to Mohammed Bawa, a local resident, though some of his guards were wounded and one of them died instantly.
Bawa said multiple gunshots also caused damage to the emir’s vehicles.
He clarified that on Thursday, the bandits had also returned to the town in search of the Emir. When they were unable to locate him, they moved from house to house, killing four people.
“The bandits broke into the Emir’s palace and started shooting randomly in an attempt to kill the Emir, but he escaped.
“They wrecked all the cars there and killed one of the palace guards,”, said Bawa.
The bandits also made their way back to the town last night. When they were unable to locate the Emir, they went from house to house in search of him, killing four people in the process.
“Today, Friday, funeral prayers were held in accordance with an Islamic decree.”
As this is Friday, the day of the market, the state government has announced that the popular Maru market will be closed due to the possibility of an attack by bandits.
Munnir Haidara, the state commissioner for information, issued a statement in which he stated: “The state government has closed the Maru market until the security situation is improved following the Maru town security situation.
“Dauda Lawal, the State’s Executive Governor, extends her condolences to the families of those killed in last Thursday night’s bandit attack.”
