Men in Army uniform suspected to be soldiers have stormed the Sabon Birnin Daji cattle market in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State and reportedly killed three locals and over 100 cows in the community.
However, survivors of the market shooting who were at the popular cattle market doing their business alleged that the soldiers opened fire on the cattle, leading to the deaths of at least three people as traders ran helter-skelter for safety.
According to a local, Malam Shehu Sabon Birni, “when the soldiers stormed the market, some of them on motorbikes, they just started shooting the cows. Two people were killed in the confusion. More than 100 cows were killed, and they are scattered in the market. People with houses close to the market are seriously disturbed by the offensive smell. No one can tell why the soldiers attacked the market,” he said.
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Commenting on his Facebook page, Kaduna-based Islamic scholar Dr. Ahmad Gumi stated, “banditry has a cause and this is part of it. Two wrongs don’t make a right, especially when committed by those entrusted with our protection.”
Gumi shared a video clip on Facebook showing the dead animals scattered across the market and the three dead bodies.
Speaking to journalists, a local butcher who craved anonymity said he was at the market with his colleagues to buy a cow but had to leave abruptly when the soldiers came and started shooting.
“It was horrific. We were able to escape unhurt, but I couldn’t carry the cow head and other animal parts that I bought. We used to go to the market on Sundays because cows were cheaper there than in Kaduna. We gathered money to buy a cow with others, then we slaughtered and shared the meat,” he said.
The police public relations officer in Kaduna could not be reached for comment at press time, and neither has the Kaduna state government nor the 1 Mechanised Division of the Nigerian Army have responded to the incident.
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