At least six members of the Community Protection Guards (CPG) were killed on Thursday afternoon in an ambush by suspected bandits in Bungudu Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
The attack happened around 12:30 p.m. while the guards were travelling from Bungudu to Yar Katsina in the Kekun Waje District. They were on their way to visit the family of a colleague who had been killed a day earlier.
Eyewitnesses said the guards were suddenly attacked by heavily armed bandits, who opened fire and killed six of them on the spot. The attackers also took away several rifles and a motorcycle belonging to the victims.
There are fears that some of the guards may have been abducted during the attack, but the exact number is not yet known.
Soldiers under Operation FANSAR were sent to the area shortly after the incident, but the bandits had already escaped into the forest before their arrival.
The bodies of the six slain guards have been brought back to Bungudu town for burial.
Zamfara State has been one of the hardest-hit states by banditry in recent years, with frequent attacks on communities, abductions, and killings despite ongoing military operations.