JUST IN: Tension in Edo as Gunmen kill 8 NSCDC personnel, kidnap Chinese

A heart-wrecking incident took place in Edo State on Friday night as heavily armed gunmen ambushed and killed eight personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) during a shocking assault on the BUA Cement Company in Okpella.

The terrific attack happened around the stroke of 10:00apm on that fateful Friday, as the unsuspecting security team walked into a hail of gunfire.

According to reports, the security Operatives were escorting five Chinese expatriates back to base after a routine patrol when the attackers laid siege at the company’s entrance.

In the ensuing gunfire, eight NSCDC personnel and one civilian were cut down instantly, while four other officers sustained serious injuries and are now battling for their lives at an undisclosed hospital.

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Amid the chaos, the assailants succeeded in abducting one of the expatriates. Four others narrowly escaped after being rescued in what sources described as a “swift response” from the Corps.

The fallen officers were members of the security detail assigned to protect the factory, which has long been considered a critical industrial hub in Edo State.

State Commandant of the NSCDC, Gbenga Agun, was said to have rushed to both the crime scene and the hospital treating the injured, in a bid to assess the carnage firsthand.

However, when pressed for comments, the Corps’ Public Relations Officer in Edo, Efosa Ogbebor, refused to give details, insisting that only the national headquarters would release an official statement.

Meanwhile, the spate of insecurity in Edo State is becoming worrisome, the gruesome killing of the Operatives occurred barely a month after some herdsmen suspected to be kidnappers reportedly abducted a retired teacher and a farmer, Andrew Imuekheme.

The incident took place on Tuesday, August 12, 2025, at Ikabigbo community in Uzairue Kingdom, Etsako West local government area of Edo, still in Edo State.

The victim was regrettably killed by his abductors.

It was gathered that the deceased was returning home from the farm when he ran into the herders who abducted him, dragged him into the bush and later killed him.

A community source who spoke to journalists on phone, said a woman who escaped from the suspected kidnappers ran home to inform the vigilantes and hunters who subsequently mobilized for bush combing.

He said following the development, people started calling family members who went to the farm to come home to avoid being killed by the marauders.

“The late Andrew was returning home when he was taken away by the marauding herders who abducted him”

“The vigilante operatives later found his motorcycle and his shoes while his corpse was later found in the evening after serious bush-combing with gunshot and machete cuts.

The traditional ruler of the community, Chief Braimah Alegeh, who described his people as peace-lovers, has condemned incident.

He called on the State Government and security agencies to come to their aid so that the people can go to their farms without being killed by herders and bandits.

“We are predominantly farmers and peace loving people. Government and security agents should come to our aid so that we have peace,” he said.

When contacted, the State Police Command’s Spokesman, CSP Moses Yamu, could not speak, as he said he was at a function.

The incident brings the number of persons killed by herders in the community to three.

It would be recalled that a Catholic Reverend Father and the chairman of the hunters in the community were kidnapped and killed in the community about two years ago.