Fresh Benue attack: Death toll rises to 24, mass burial holds Friday

Twenty four persons , mostly women and children , were on Monday killed in a fresh crisis at Omusu Edimoga in the Okpokwu Local Government Area of Benue State.

The council Chairman , Olofu Ogwuche, stated this while conducting the state Governor , Samuel Ortom, round the affected community on Tuesday.

The governor and members of state security council had visited the community for on - the - spot assessment of the situation.

Ogwuche explained that some herdsmen had reported to the police , the loss of their cows some kilometres away from the affected village.

Ogwuche said he had already called a peace meeting when report got to him that the herdsmen had invaded the village and killed people.

The herdsmen were said to have invaded the community between 2 pm and 3 pm; some of the children killed were said to be returning from school.

In a two - room building , eight persons were said to have been murdered during the attack .

The remains of an 11 - year- old girl in her school uniform were discovered by police at the time the governor visited the area.

The chairman said , “ On Monday , policemen informed me that some herdsmen reported that the people of Omusu Edimoga rustled their cows.

“ When I heard of this , I started a mediation process to settle the matter . It was while this was going on that I received information that herdsmen had invaded the community.

“ I rushed down to the community along with policemen and we were able to recover 17 corpses which we took to the mortuary at the Okpoga General Hospital .

“ This morning ( Tuesday ), we had recovered the remains of six persons that have been taken to the mortuary . As we were moving around , the corpse of an 11 - year- old girl was recovered . So , in all, 24 persons have been confirmed dead, while some are still missing . ”

At St Mary ’ s Catholic Hospital , Okpoga, a little boy , identified as Loko , who was shot in the buttocks and who also lost his mother to the attack , burst into tears when he sighted the governor’ s entourage in the ward.

Ortom, who condemned the attack , accused the Fulani of always taking the law into their own hands.

“ They reported a case of cattle rustling, and instead of waiting for the outcome of the police investigation , they went to the community and killed 24 people in a day , it is senseless.

“ The people in this community do not understand cow language, so no one here rustles their cow . It is Fulani men that are rustling their fellow Fulani men’ s cows.

“ We cannot continue with these senseless killings , that is why we came out with the law which is aimed to protect everyone.

“ When Sharia law was introduced in Zamfara State , no one violated the law ; let security men do their job and arrest the perpetrators. ”

The governor, however , called on the people not to take the law into their own hands.

Earlier , the Benue State Police Command spokesman , ASP Moses Yamu , had said 16 , persons were killed.

He said the herdsmen were on reprisal after the people of Omusu “ maimed their cows , while two herdsmen got missing , and one of them was later found dead".

The Cable later reported that Ortom had ordered that the victims of the latest attack be buried on Friday.