Dare Babalola
There was tension in Otobi, a community in the Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State on Tuesday as suspected armed herdsmen reportedly killed five persons.
Confirming this on Channels Television, President of the Otobi Community Development Association, John Anyebe, disclosed that Igbabe Ochi, a former House of Assembly candidate for the Otukpo-Akpa State Constituency on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party during the 2019 general election was among those that were killed.
He also confirmed that the attack occurred at about 1.30 a.m. on Tuesday, following a failed kidnap attempt in the community on Sunday night.
Anyebe said the assailants entered the community through the railway station bridge from the Ijami area.
“Yes, the attack was carried out by suspected herdsmen who have been terrorising our community.
“They first shot one person close to the water board before heading to where Hon. Igbabe Ochi and four others were seated near the transformer junction. They opened fire on them and later looted nearby stores for food and other valuables,” he stated.
Anyebe recalled that Otobi had suffered repeated attacks in the past year, including an incident on 15 April 2025 when 13 persons were killed.
He said two weeks later, three more residents were killed at the Omebe axis of the community.
The Benue State Police Command had yet to issue a statement on the latest attack as of the time of filing this report. Calls and messages to the Police Public Relations Officer, Udeme Edet, were unanswered.
Reacting to the killings, the lawmaker representing Otukpo-Akpa State Constituency, Kennedy Angbo, said the situation had become unbearable.
Speaking with Channels Television, Angbo linked the Otobi attack to other recent incidents in the area.
“You can imagine that five of my people have been killed again at Otobi community of Akpa district, barely a year after 13 persons were killed on April 15, 2025,” he said.
Angbo also recalled the recent attack on a Benue Links bus along the Otukpo axis.
“On Sunday at about 7 p.m., around Burnt Bricks, Otukpo, gunmen opened fire on travellers, injuring three persons. It was just God that prevented more deaths,” he said.
He called on security agencies to intensify intelligence gathering and operations to flush out what he described as “terrorists” operating around Otukpo and neighbouring communities.
