Not less than four communities in the Akure North Local Government Area of Ondo State have been sacked by suspected gunmen who invaded and killed farmers working on their farms.
The gunmen shot dead over 20 farmers and held hostage another set of farmers in the agrarian communities.
Akure North had been the hotbed of kidnapping and killing of farmers in recent times. Two farmers were abducted at the weekend, and the abductors have demanded a ransom of N100million.
The communities that had fallen into the hands of bandits during the midnight attack at the weekend included Aba Pastor, Aba Sunday, Ademekun camp and Aba Alajido camps within Ala Elefosan.
A source told reporters that the gunmen have been attacking different communities and killing farmers unchallenged by security agents.
The source noted that 14 dead bodies were recovered in the last 48 hours while a search for other missing residents continues, lamenting that over 20 people were gunned down during the night raid by the bandits.
The Regent of one of the attacked communities, Ademekun Village, Princess Adelowo Adekemisola, expressed sadness over the killings of more than 14 farmers last weekend by the herdsmen who infiltrated the areas and started shooting recklessly.
Narrating her experience before the Ondo State government representatives at a town hall meeting with cocoa farmers in Akure, the state capital of Ondo State yesterday, she said her community had been battling with herdsmen problem without security actions.
According to her, the herdsmen come through the Edo-Ondo boundary to attack them.
The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mrs Funmilayo Odunlami, said the police and security agencies are working hard to track down perpetrators and to protect other communities around Akure North Council Area
