Bandits Att∆ck Eruku Community In Kwara, B¥rn Vehicles During Raid, Forest Guards Repel K!dnap Attempt

Bandits Attack Eruku Community In Kwara, Burn Vehicles During Raid, Forest Guards Repel Kidnap Attempt

Residents told SaharaReporters that the incident occurred at about 5:00 a.m. when heavily armed gunmen stormed the community.

Suspected bandits early Friday morning invaded Eruku community in Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State, burning a vehicle during the raid before local security operatives repelled the attackers.

Residents told SaharaReporters that the incident occurred at about 5:00 a.m. when heavily armed gunmen stormed the community.

A resident of the community said Eruku had come under repeated attacks by suspected bandits in recent times, raising fears about the worsening security situation in the area.

“Eruku is my village. This is not the first time bandits are attacking us,” the resident said. “The last time they came, they struck during a church live programme.”

According to the resident, the gunmen returned again in the early hours of Friday, shooting sporadically and setting a vehicle ablaze during the raid.

“The bandits came very early in the morning and burned vehicles. I heard they are kidnapping and killing people. We are calling for help because this place is no longer safe,” the resident added.

However, a local security source in the council area told SaharaReporters that security operatives, including vigilantes and forest guards, confronted the attackers and prevented the operation from escalating.

“It was an attempted kidnapping which was repelled by security operatives,” the source said.

Eruku community lies along the boundary between Kwara State and neighbouring Kogi State, an area residents say has increasingly become vulnerable to attacks by armed groups operating from nearby forests.

A source explained that the proximity to communities in Yagba West Local Government Area of Kogi State, where banditry and kidnapping have intensified, has made Eruku and surrounding settlements easy targets for criminal gangs.

“This is the boundary between Kogi and Kwara. The entire Yagba West axis is facing serious bandit attacks. They are killing and abducting people there, and now they are also coming to our communities,” the source added.

Residents lamented that repeated attacks have left many villagers living in constant fear, forcing some families to consider fleeing their homes if urgent security measures are not taken.

They called on the Kwara State Government and security agencies to immediately deploy more personnel and establish stronger security presence in the border communities to prevent further attacks.