The family of the murdered Dnako village head in Bwari Area Council of the FCT, HRH Etsu Yuda Garba, has revealed that the two grandchildren of the village head, including five other residents who were abducted alongside the chief, are still alive in their abductors’ captivity.

A family member of the late village head, Mr. Tanko Baba, while giving update on the incident through telephone on Tuesday, said the kidnappers’ leader called on Monday, saying the chief’s grandchildren and the five other residents were alive and healthy.

He said during the conversation, the family pleaded with the kidnappers’ leader to cut down the ransom to a level that they could afford, and he agreed to reduce it from N100 million to N90 million.

He said, “It was my elder brother that spoke with the leader of the kidnappers on Monday, around 11:23 am and during the conversation, the kidnappers’ leader gave the phone to the chief’s grandchildren to confirm that they are alive alongside the five other residents.’’

He said their leader insisted on the N90 million ransom, adding that they threatened to kill one of the victims again should the family delay in raising the money.

He said, “As am talking to you right now, the family are in state of devastation because we don’t know how and where to raise such money. And that is how they threatened to kill the chief like play, at the end, they ended up killing him.”

It would be recalled that the kidnappers had on March 11, 2025 invaded Dnako village in Bwari around 12:03 am and abducted the late chief, two of his grandchildren, Ephraim and Philemon, alongside five other residents of the community.

The kidnappers who had earlier demanded for N100 ended up killing the chief on Sunday, and dumped his corpse at Knakuchi village under Kagarko LGA of Kaduna State.

The corpse of the late chief was retrieved by the vigilantes and he was buried in Dnako village in Bwari.

(Daily Trust)

Another fatal road accident has occurred in the Felele area of Lokoja, Kogi State, claiming the life of one person and leaving at least 10 others hospitalised.

The incident happened on Tuesday, just a day after students of the Federal University Lokoja (FUL) resumed academic activities following the tragic deaths of seven of their colleagues in a similar crash last month.

Eyewitnesses who spoke to SaharaReporters confirmed that three university students were among those injured in the latest accident.

“Another accident for Felele just this week that school resumed. One person died. We have more than 10 serious injuries sustained. Three students were involved,” a witness told SaharaReporters.

“They have been taken to the specialist hospital,” he added.

This latest tragedy has reignited concerns over the growing number of accidents on the Lokoja highway, a notorious black spot that has claimed several lives in recent months.

Last week, SaharaReporters reported that the Federal University Lokoja had reopened after being shut down indefinitely in February due to the deadly accident that claimed the lives of seven students and a bus driver.

The accident, which occurred near the university’s permanent site, involved an articulated truck carrying wood and jerrycans of palm oil. The truck reportedly lost control and crashed into a shuttle bus transporting students.

Eyewitnesses recounted how the bus was preparing to leave for the university when the truck rammed into it at high speed, crushing the vehicle and killing its occupants instantly.

The incident sparked massive protests, with students blocking major roads and demanding urgent government intervention to prevent further loss of lives on the highway.

In response, the university management, in consultation with security agencies and the Kogi State Government, ordered an immediate closure of the institution to prevent further escalation of protests.

Students were directed to vacate campus immediately as tensions ran high.

Following weeks of negotiations and promises by the authorities to improve road safety measures, the university’s Senate approved the reopening of the institution on March 10, 2025. A statement issued by the university’s management stated that lectures would commence on March 17, 2025.

However, barely 48 hours after students resumed, another accident occurred in the same Felele area, further highlighting the dangers of the Lokoja highway.

Students and residents of the area have expressed frustration over the repeated road tragedies, blaming poor road conditions, reckless driving by truck drivers, and lack of adequate traffic control measures.

“The government has done nothing to stop these accidents. How many more people must die before something is done?” a student lamented.

Another resident, who identified himself as Musa, told SaharaReporters, “We have been crying about this issue for a long time, but the authorities don’t care. Every time an accident happens, they make empty promises, and then nothing changes. Now another person has died.”

With the latest accident adding to the growing death toll, students and concerned residents are once again calling on the government to take immediate action to prevent further tragedies.

They demand strict speed limits for heavy-duty trucks be enforced, improved road signage be installed, and pedestrian bridges be constructed in accident-prone areas.

Despite repeated tragedies on this highway, authorities have yet to take meaningful action to address the dangers posed to students and other road users.

About two persons have been killed in the protracted land dispute between the people of Umuobor, Akaeze, and their Ogwor neighbours in Ishiagu, both in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.

The two neighbouring communities have been at war for over five decades over a vast, fertile land known as Elueke, with many lives lost and properties worth billions of naira destroyed.

The situation forced Governor Francis Nwifuru to declare the disputed land a buffer zone and also set up a committee to find lasting solutions to the crisis.

However, killings, maiming, and destruction still persist. On Monday, an elderly man and woman were killed in the disputed land by suspected warlords.

An activist, Nwoba Chika Nwoba, said he had written to Governor Francis Nwifuru to urgently bring the war to an end but claimed that nothing had been done.

“I got information that these aged persons here were killed in the fight between Ishiagu & Akaeze today in Ivo LGA of Ebonyi State. I had written twice earlier that the governor, Hon. Francis Nwifuru, should do something urgently to bring this to halt, but I’m not sure he has done anything obvious to end the feud.

“These corpses are from Akaeze. I don’t know yet if the Ishiagu side has a casualty. I’m still calling on the Governor to do something to end this lest it becomes too difficult to handle. Every life matters, stakeholders of these two towns should join hands and get this unnecessary conflagration quenched,” he said.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Joshua Ukandu, said he had not received a report of the incident.