A letter from suspected bandits threatening coordinated attacks has caused many people in the Kungaboku and Paze neighborhoods of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja to leave their homes.
NAN says that the letter that was supposedly found in a student’s school bag at a private school said that the bandits will assault Kungaboku and the nearby town of Paze to get back at the death of their leader.
It should be remembered that on March 7, the 7 Guards Battalion, Guards Brigade of the Nigerian Army, along with police and vigilantes, freed 19 people who had been kidnapped.
Most of the victims lived in Paze and Kungaboku. They got their freedom back during a coordinated search and rescue mission around Gidan Dogo in the Bwari Area Council.
Reports say that during the operation, soldiers killed one bandit and others ran away with what looked like gunshot wounds.
One AK-47 rifle and one gun made in the vicinity were found after more exploitation of the area.
A teacher at a private school in Paze found the threat letter in a student’s notebook while grading the student’s homework.
The police picked up the student, the parents, the instructor, and the school officials after they raised the alarm. They were questioned, profiled, and then let go.
In the meantime, knowledge of the threat spread quickly as people shared it on social media and in neighborhood organizations.
To make things worse, a day before the letter came out, suspected bandits raided a Fulani village in Kungaboku, took three women hostage, and asked for a N70 million ransom.
Recently, there have been a lot of violent incidents in Kungaboku and Paze, which are near Byazhin, an extension of Kubwa in the Bwari Area Council.
In October 2025, Dr. Ifeanyi Ogbu, a veterinarian, was slain in Kungaboku, a rural town with hundreds of farmers who raise fish, poultry, and animals.
Ogbu, who used to be the head of the Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association’s FCT Chapter, was kidnapped with his three kids. Later, he was shot in an open field as the kids were taken away.
On March 5, suspected bandits also assaulted Kungaboku and took Bankole Ganiyu, a retired military officer, and three children.
Ganiyu’s wife, who is a police officer, and two other kids who were in the house at the time of the attack were able to get away without being hurt.
That same day, the bandits assaulted an agricultural village, killed a vigilante who was on watch, and kidnapped three workers. Six others got away.
People in Paze stated that the attacks happened again and again, with armed groups invading nearby towns and taking people from their homes.
Gunmen have taken at least 12 individuals hostage in the last two weeks, including women and children.
Four kids of a pastor and a vigilante leader’s wife and her sister were among those who were taken. In another case, a newborn was left behind.
The Byazhin Divisional Police Officer called a meeting on Saturday to deal with the most recent danger and keep people from leaving in large numbers.
Police acknowledged the letter at a meeting at the palace of Kungaboku’s community leader, Chief Ishaya Jagaba. They also promised people that they would take steps to keep them safe.
People were told to stay alert and keep an eye on the activities of commercial motorcyclists and scavengers, who occasionally work as informants for attacks.
They were also told to check out new people moving into the neighborhood to make sure they aren’t criminals or snitches.
The DPO asked people in Kungaboku to do what they could to help make the proposed police post a reality.
He promised that security patrols will happen every day and night in the community to stop any attacks.
For now, Kungaboku and Paze are scared. Their homes are empty, and the people there are worried that the promised security measures won’t stop another attack.
Community leaders, on the other hand, told people not to panic but to stay alert and promised them that working with security services may stop more violence.
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