At least eight people were killed in a suspected cult attack along Aliade Street in the High Level area of Makurdi, Benue State, in the early hours of Monday. Armed men, believed to have arrived on motorcycles between 2 a.m. and 2:30 a.m., stormed a residential compound and opened fire. According to Hon. Joseph Keffi, Chairman of Makurdi Local Government Area, four victims were shot inside the house while asleep, and four others were killed as they responded to the gunfire. The attack was linked to ongoing cult activities in the region.
Keffi stated that the violence stemmed from a fleeing cult member who had sought refuge in the High Level area after escaping from North Bank Makurdi. The victims, according to him, were not cult members but were targeted for sheltering the individual. "What we heard was that a cult member who had issues with his group escaped from North Bank and hid with his friends at High Level. Sadly, those killed were innocent people who only gave him accommodation," Keffi said. He added that residents have identified a suspected gang leader known for repeated attacks in Makurdi and surrounding communities.
Security agencies were alerted immediately, and the police have reinforced presence in the area. DSP Udeme Edet, Police Public Relations Officer, confirmed that detectives were deployed to the scene and that preliminary investigations point to a cult-related motive. The gang is allegedly led by a man known as "Odinaka," described by police as notorious in such criminal acts. Eleven suspects have been arrested, while efforts continue to apprehend Odinaka and other fleeing members. The victims' bodies have been moved to the morgue at Benue State University Teaching Hospital and a private hospital in Makurdi.
Joseph Keffi says the victims were innocent friends who sheltered a fleeing cult member, yet he frames the attack as routine cult business rather than a failure to protect civilians. If security knew about Odinaka's pattern of violence and he still operates freely, then the system is protecting informants more than citizens. Eleven arrests mean little if the alleged kingpin evades capture again. Makurdi residents are left wondering whose side the crackdown is really on.
Editorial note: AI-assisted opinion. All persons mentioned are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Full disclaimer →
