by S’ola Filani

Gunmen, suspected to be robbers, on Sunday took over the  Kaduna-Abuja Expressway, robbed   motorists and killed two persons.

Among the vehicles attacked by robbers was an official car with an inscription I- CARE Women and Children Initiative, belonging to the Non-Governmental Organisation owned by the wife of the Vice President, Namadi Sambo, Hajia Amina.

The robbers, it was learnt dispossessed passengers of their belongings.

Punch reports it below:

The development led to  multiples accidents as vehicles plying the highway crashed into one another in their desperate bid to escape, leading to the death of two commuters.

The Kaduna State Police Public Relations Officer, Aminu Lawan, who confirmed the incident,  attributed the multiple accident to panic on the part of motorists, who attempted to escape to avoid being robbed.

Although, he said there was no official report of casualties in the incident “but the police also helped in putting off the fire and conveying some of the injured to the hospital.”

One of the victims and Kaduna State  Coordinator of NGO, Abdulrahman Mikailu, who spoke while on his hospital bed at the St. Gerald Hospital in Kaduna on Sunday, said his official vehicle was among the five vehicles that were involved in the multiple crash.

He added  that two bullets, shot by the armed robbers, narrowly missed him, saying the robbers were dressed in military uniforms.

He said, “Two bullets shot by the bandits missed me narrowly when I tried to come out of my vehicle to put off the fire, not knowing that a robbery operation was going on. I had to duck and fall on the ground, pretending to be dead.

“The robbers, who were in military uniforms, thought I was dead, so they proceeded to my car and ordered my co-traveller to surrender all his money laptop, handsets and other personal belonging of both of us.

“The fire had already increased as of the time of the attack; that is why the sympathisers could not put it off. I understand that they killed two passengers in a commercial vehicle and robbed several vehicles.

“I am lucky to have survived with bruises and chest injury from the accident, but I lost my phones and other belongings.”

Meanwhile, an health practitioner in  the state, Isiyaku Garba, was killed by gunmen on Saturday night.

It was gathered that the gunmen trailed Garba to his house and shot him in the presence of his family shortly after breaking his fast.

A friend of the deceased, called Malam Usman, told  confirmed the attack to newsmen on Sunday.

“I have just returned from the Tudun Wada cemetery where we buried Isyaku Garba of the Kaduna State School of Health Technology, who was killed in his house last night by unknown assassins,” he said.