A 56-year-old farmer has been killed by suspected herders in Miango, Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State, after he reportedly tried to stop them from grazing on his farm.
The tragic incident occurred on Thursday evening, around 5 p.m., when the farmer, whose name has not been officially released, went to inspect his millet farm and found herders allowing their cattle to destroy his crops.
His son, Stephen, who confirmed the incident to journalists on Friday, said his father simply approached the herders to ask them to leave the farm but was violently attacked.
“They used their knives and cut all over his body. They left him in a pool of blood, and that’s how he died,” Stephen said in tears.
According to him, the attack was reported to security personnel immediately by residents who witnessed it, but there was no response until the next day. “It was only this morning that we saw the security men at the house,” he added.
The killing has sparked fresh tension in Miango, a community that has experienced repeated clashes between farmers and herders in recent years.
Security agencies have yet to release an official statement, but local residents are calling for swift justice and better protection for farmers in rural communities.
Miango, located in Bassa LGA, has been a hotspot for land-related violence, with farmers often accusing herders of destroying farmlands and attacking villagers.