DSP Peter Aondongu, spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, confirmed the casualties in a telephone interview Friday with journalists, saying four policemen and seven civilians lost their lives, and that a formal statement would follow shortly.
A community resident, Tyolumun Ugande, told journalists that roughly 200 suspected armed herders stormed Ayilamo, opening fire on residents and setting houses ablaze. According to Ugande, a detachment of Mobile Police deployed to the area engaged the attackers, who were armed with sophisticated weapons, in a gun battle lasting several hours before the assailants retreated.
He said four bodies belonging to Mobile Police officers and community members were recovered from the bush on Friday morning.
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