On Thursday night, shooting and the cries of terrified locals shattered the tranquility of Dangani, a small town in the Musawa Local Government Area of Katsina State.
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According to the DAILY POST, Alhaji Muntari Dan-Ifon, a well-known businessman in Sagamu, was the target of an armed bandit attack that caused widespread mayhem in the area.
Still, the local vigilante squad shone as an exemplar of bravery amidst the chaos.
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In a violent shootout that lasted more than an hour, the vigilantes protected Alhaji Dan-Ifon and the entire town from the robbers’ abduction attempt.
According to reports, the attack started in the middle of the night as a gang of bandits made their way into the community on foot, navigating the farmlands surrounding it.
Their intended target, the billionaire Alhaji Muntari Dan-Ifon of Sagamu, was in Dangani to pay his respects after a family member passed away.
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He had no idea his mere presence would set in motion a terrifying nightmare.
The horrific events were described by eyewitnesses in great detail, who emphasized the audacity of the attackers.
An eyewitness described the deafening boom of gunfire as “shattering the stillness of the night” as they heard the attack.
We were all in a state of panic as we rushed to figure out what was going on. Later on, we witnessed armed individuals making their way through the village,” he emphasized.
With gallantry, the bandits advanced toward the whereabouts of Alhaji Dan-Ifon. But the courageous Dangani vigilantes showed up and showed no signs of backing down from their mission to defend their town. They were prepared with weapons and stopped the robbers in their tracks before they could make it to Alhaji Dan-Ifon’s house.
A fierce gunfight ensued.
“It was like something out of a movie,” another neighborhood member who observed the attack remarked.
Another witness described the local vigilantes as having a strong feeling of community duty and standing firm against the assailants who were armed to the teeth.
In that critical moment, the vigilantes served as our protectors. They got into a gun battle with the bandits that went on for what felt like an eternity. Here on our doorstep, good guys and bad guys were battling it out.
The local vigilantes successfully blocked the robbers from reaching their main objective during the heated gunfire that lasted more than an hour.
The swift action and courage of the vigilante squad are much appreciated. They put up such a fight that the robbers had to give up on their main goal. In spite of all that was going on, they got him and his family to a safe place,” he said.
Although the brave actions of bystanders stopped his kidnapping, the episode has left a lasting impression of distrust and has prompted disturbing inquiries on the function of informants in the neighborhood.
Reports indicate that some informants in the region have been slain in the past, and others have escaped.
“We haven’t found all the informants in the community yet,” a source from the area said.
Problems persisted even after the vigilantes had succeeded in rescuing Alhaji Dan-Ifon.
The irate robbers took out their frustrations on the locals, abducting eight people (mostly young males) and resorted to random gunshots.
Government Day Secondary School Dangani had a pupil among its casualties.
More than twenty assaults have recently befallen the Dangani community, with this incident being the newest instalment.
“We are living in constant fear,” expressed Sani Abubakar, a community father and member.
“Who knows who’ll be next? We have no idea. Our town is in a state of paralysis due to fear, and the future of our children’s education is at jeopardy as a result of instructors running away.
“The locals are left with us, and it’s clear they don’t have enough people to give good education,” he sorrowfully said.