11 people including a chief pharmacist in JUTH, James Gyang
Tiri, were shot dead by unknown gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen,
in Lopandet, Dwei village of Du district in Jos South Local Government
Area of Plateau State last Sunday. 

It was gathered that the gunmen stormed the area in
military uniforms. They drove in a Hilux vehicle and about four
power-bikes, carrying three people each.

Those in the Hilux shot sporadically with sophisticated
riffles, while the two occupants of the power-bikes (apart from the
riders) also shot indiscriminately.

The panic-stricken people of the area scampered for safety,
causing pandemonium. Apart from members of the communities that were
caught in the fire, many passerby and travellers, including late Tiri,
were also affected.

The next morning people began to collect the corpses of the
dead from the roadside, shops and other places. Twelve others also
suffered varying degrees of injury.

Those injured were rushed to the Jos University Teaching Hopsital (JUTH) and the Plateau State Specialist Hospital (PSSH).

Recounting her ordeal to Daily Trust, Victoria, wife of late Gyang Tiri, (pictured with brother-in-law)  said:

“My husband called me around 7pm on that fateful day,
saying that he was on his way from Gindiri and was already at a place
called Bisichi. I was at home waiting for him with the children. When I
didn’t see him I called him throughout the night but his phone was
switched off. In the morning, somebody called me, saying that my husband
was involved in an accident but he was okay and I should come and take
him home. So I took my kids in my car and went there. On getting there I
saw so many people and cars on the road and I was wondering what was
happening.

“I stepped out of my car and called the number that earlier
called me, and the person said I should wait for him at a particular
gate. When I got to the gate, I heard some women discussing, and one of
them said, ‘One of the victims is even a pharmacist.’ I shouted and
began running back to where the crowd was, but someone grabbed me from
the back. It was the person that called me. He was telling me sorry for
the loss and that I should take heart. I told him to stop consoling me
and tell me what happened. He then narrated everything to me. I freed
myself from his grip after that, pulled myself together and went to his
car.

“He was there soaked in blood, with gunshots on his body. I
broke down and began crying. My children too were crying and shouting.
The two eldest ones are old enough to know what was happened, while the
little one was saying, ‘Mummy is crying. Who beat you mummy? Stop
crying, you hear…’

“I didn’t know that my husband was dead, otherwise I
wouldn’t have taken my children there because such sight isn’t good for
them. It could remain evergreen in their minds and haunt them forever,’
she narrated.

She said she was so devastated that she gave her phone to
someone else to call his brothers and/colleagues in the office, who
later came and took his corpse to the JUTH mortuary. According to her,
his car was driven back home by one of his brothers while someone drove
hers and brought her back home with her children.

She said her husband’s phone and wallet were not found,
noting that she was told the attackers or community members searched all
the dead persons and made away with their phones and money.

“The annoying part of it is that the government is silent
about all these killings. My husband is not the first. In his village,
most of his relatives have been killed. Many people in other villages
too have been killed, yet the government is not saying anything. Let the
government put an end to these killings,’’ Victoria said.

The deceased’s elder brother, Pam Gyang Tiri, berated the
role of security agents in the incident. He alleged that as they were
getting to the scene to pick their brother’s corpse, they met some
policemen nearby in about four Hilux vans and they said they didn’t know
the scene of the incident. He said their attitude left much to be
desired, adding that he later discovered that the place was close to
where the police were.

He said the incident happened in the district of the
immediate past governor of the state and senator representing Jos North,
Jonah Jang. It is also the area where Buken Academy, a school belonging
to Gbong Gwon Jos and former comptroller-general of customs, Jacob
Gyang Buba, is located.

Confirming the attack, the Police Public Relations Officer,
Plateau State command, DSP Tyopev Terna, said that when they received a
distress call that unknown gunmen were attacking Lopandet Dwei, the
command immediately mobilised its personnel to the scene, but on
arrival, they discovered that people had already been killed.

“The victims were immediately rushed to the JUTH and
Plateau Specialist Hospital. Eleven persons have been confirmed dead by
doctors while 12 were wounded and are now on admission. More security
personnel have been deployed to the area to prevent further attacks on
the community,’’ he said, adding that investigation into the crime was
ongoing,” he said.