Eleven people, including four police officers and seven civilians, were killed when suspected armed attackers invaded Ayilamo in Tombo Council Ward, Logo Local Government Area of Benue State, according to the Benue State Police Command.
The attack began at about 6:12 p.m. on Thursday, September 10, and continued for roughly seven hours, police said.
Officers from the Police Mobile Force, tactical teams and the conventional police eventually repelled the attackers, who fled towards surrounding forests, according to a statement attributed to the command’s spokesperson, Orchia
Aondongu.
The police identified the officers killed as Paul Ina, Mohammed Yusuf, Oge Ikechukwu and Edeh Andrew.
Their bodies were recovered from nearby bushes during search operations. The bodies of seven civilian victims were also recovered and deposited at a mortuary, the command said.
Conflicting early toll
The police figure followed an earlier account from the community that put the civilian death toll at eight, making 12 fatalities in total.
Nigerian Tribune reported that residents
recovered four police bodies and eight civilian bodies after the gun battle, while the police later confirmed seven civilian deaths.
The discrepancy had not been publicly explained in the reports reviewed for this story. Residents described a prolonged assault involving gunfire and the burning of houses.
Tyolumun Ugande, a resident quoted by P.M. News and Premium Times, claimed that about 200 armed men attacked the community.
That account, including the description of the assailants as suspected armed herders, remains a witness allegation and has not been independently established.
The Secretary of the Ayilamo Security Committee, Umishi Terungwa, confirmed the attack and said community elders, residents and security personnel were among those killed. He also said two children were among the civilian victims.
The police have referred to the attackers as suspected armed bandits or criminal elements. No security agency cited in the reports reviewed has publicly established the attackers’ identities or stated that a particular ethnic or religious group was responsible.
Alia: Three suspects arrested
Benue Governor Hyacinth Alia condemned the killings and described the attack as a threat to the security and stability of the state.
He commiserated with the victims’ families and the Inspector-General of Police over the deaths of the officers.
The governor also commended the Department of State Services for arresting three suspects allegedly connected to the attack.
He called for investigators to pursue every lead, identify possible accomplices and sponsors, and prosecute anyone found culpable. The reported arrests are allegations at this stage; no court finding has been reported.
The police command said additional tactical teams had been deployed to Ayilamo and that it was working with other security agencies to strengthen operations in the area.
Residents were urged to remain calm, stay vigilant and provide information that could assist the investigation.
Obi calls for protection, not condemnations
In a statement posted on X, Peter Obi expressed sympathy for the bereaved families and the people of Logo.
He called on the Federal Government and security agencies to act urgently, bring the perpetrators to justice and prevent further attacks. “We must stop counting our dead and start protecting our living,” Obi said in the statement supplied for this report.
Obi said every Nigerian life—whether that of a farmer, child, police officer, soldier, Christian, Muslim or member of any ethnic group—has equal value.
He linked the latest attack to the
wider security crisis in Benue and recalled his recent attempt to visit families affected by violence in Yelwata.
That earlier visit became politically contentious after youths blocked Obi’s convoy in Makurdi.
Obi alleged that the disruption involved people acting for a government aide,
while the Benue government denied involvement and said he had not formally notified the state of his visit.
Police said they were aware of the visit and were investigating the incident,
according to Punch.
The dispute over Obi’s visit should not obscure the central issue raised by the Ayilamo killings: the continued vulnerability of civilians and security personnel in communities where attacks recur despite the presence of police formations.
Ayilamo Police Station was upgraded to divisional headquarters in 2025 as part of a restructuring intended to close to the geographic gaps and improve response times in troubled areas.
The latest deaths now place pressure on the federal and state to demonstrate that the reported arrests will lead to a credible investigation, that surviving residents will receive protection, and that the security deployments will prevent another attack rather than merely respond after the next loss of life.
