Terror returned to Katsina State on Sunday night as heavily armed bandits invaded Mai-Kwama, a quiet agrarian community in Dandume Local Government Area, leaving a trail of blood and heartbreak. At least four persons were reportedly killed in the brutal attack, while over fifty residents, including women and children, were forcefully taken away into the dense forests bordering the state.
The terrifying incident, which took place under the cover of darkness, has thrown the entire Dandume axis into mourning and renewed fears of rising insecurity in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's home region. According to preliminary details shared by Katsina-based security analyst Bakatsine on X (formerly Twitter), the attackers stormed the village around 11:00 p.m., operating for hours without any resistance from security forces.
Eyewitnesses say the attackers rode in on motorcycles, heavily armed, and shot sporadically to scare residents out of their homes. “They came like a swarm, surrounded the village and started breaking into houses. They shot four people dead and whisked away many others, including children as young as five,” a local source told our correspondent via phone on Monday morning.
The traumatised residents say this is not the first time Mai-Kwama and surrounding villages have been targeted. The bandits, believed to be part of the wider terror gangs operating across Nigeria’s northwest, have been using forests in the Dandume and Sabuwa axis as hideouts, launching repeated attacks on remote communities with little or no security presence.
As of the time of filing this report, no official statement has been released by the Katsina State Police Command or the state government. However, local vigilante groups and community leaders are reportedly working with security agencies to trace the attackers and secure the release of the abducted victims.
The incident comes barely a week after a similar attack in neighboring Zamfara State, further highlighting the persistent failure of existing security frameworks in tackling banditry across the region. Public outcry continues to mount as affected families plead for immediate intervention from both state and federal authorities.
With over 50 lives now hanging in uncertainty and four families plunged into grief, the people of Dandume are calling for decisive action and long-term security solutions to end what they describe as a reign of terror in rural Katsina.
This story is developing.