Gunmen Kill Pastor, Wife, Three Others in Fresh Plateau Attack

Gunmen have reportedly killed a pastor, Dauda Dalyop, in Plateau State. It was gathered that the cleric with the Assemblies of God Church was killed alongside his wife and three others during an attack which took place in the Kwall community, Bassa Local Government Area of the state on Monday.

The National Publicity Secretary of the Irigwe Development Association, Sam Jugo, confirmed the development in a statement circulated to his kinsmen on Wednesday.

The statement obtained by our correspondent in Jos, the state capital on Wednesday read, “Dear kinsmen, we woke up this morning to another sad one. In the middle of the night of June 2, 2024, criminal invaders attacked and killed five of our residents in cold blood at Ari Songo (Songo’s House), Kimakpa, Kwall District.

“The criminal elements who came in their numbers with heavy weaponry killed Pastor Dauda Dalyop, 63 years (Assemblies of God Church, Kwall); Mrs Chummy Dauda, 57 years; Mr Chwe Ajuhs, 26 years; Mr. Joshua Kusa, 45 years; Mrs Rikwe Doro, 43 years.

“Two persons were severely injured and are currently undergoing treatment at home. Troops of Operation Safe Haven were instantly mobilised to avert further genocide.

“There’s uneasy calm in the Kwall district as at press time. This sad incident came just two days after some disgruntled elements ambushed some Rigwe youths on a motorcycle while returning from the Gero mining site and instantly killed Mr Irmiya Musa Timbi and severely injured one other.“We use this medium to further appeal for calm to enable the security agencies to carry out their investigations. We should upscale our vigilance, avoid night movements to distant destinations, suppress the urge for reprisal or taking the law into our own hands and give the security agencies the benefit of the doubt.

” As much as we are quite saddened by this condemnable incident, we cannot afford to aggravate the situation by seeking self-help at this time. We call on the security agencies to do the needful by fishing out the culprits so that the affected will see justice being served as that’s the only way to restore the confidence of our people.”

In another statement which the National Publicity Secretary sent to his kinsmen on Wednesday after the burial of the victims, Jugo said, “This is to update you on the state of affairs at Kimakpa, Kwall, on what has transpired so far. The police team and the LG chairman stopped by to check the police outstation in Miango for possible upgrades and also visited the palace of the Brra Nggwe to console him over the incident at Kwall last night and other similar incidences in the last couple of days.

“The IDA President appealed to the Police Commissioner to consider upgrading the police outstation to a Division and also establish an outstation in Kwall. The CP promised to look into the matter.

“Meanwhile, the Operation Safe Haven commander has deployed officers of the Special Task Force to apprehend the culprits and they are already at work. The police commissioner of Plateau State, O. E. Adesina, and senior police officers including the DPO Bassa LG. and the local government chairman, Mr. Fidelis Adara, with other local government staff came to inspect the incident and to console the people. “The three Rigwe victims were buried after the police’s visit while the pastor and his wife were moved to the O.L.A. Hospital mortuary.”

Recall that in April 2024, gunmen killed 10 persons in two separate attacks in Plateau State.

The attacks which occurred in Mandung-Mushu and Kopnanle villages in Bokkos and Mangu LGAs left several persons injured with properties including houses of the villagers set ablaze by the gunmen. The Chairman of Bokkos Cultural Development Council, Farmasum Fuddang, confirmed the killings in a statement.

Source: Punch