Hussaini Ghani, the District Head of Miri in Bauchi State, is calling for justice after his 25-year-old son’s alleged killing by a vigilante group known as the Bauchi State Vigilante and Youth Empowerment Agency, also referred to as ‘Yan Ba Beli’.
Ghani appealed for justice at his residence in Bauchi on Monday during an interview with Daily Post.
Narrating the incident that led to the death of his son, he said he was the group’s target before his son, Muhammadu Ghani, was killed.
His words, “I’m sure they targeted me; it’s me that they wanted to kill but unfortunately, my son was killed after I left him.”
“My son was killed some minutes after I left him by a vigilante group of Umaru Shayi team,” he said.
“Until what happened to my son, they attacked us firstly at Tashan Babeye, secondly at Sheikh Dahiru’s mosque, and thirdly along the Emir’s Drive towards my house as we were coming back to the house with my procession after paying homage to the Emir.
“During the last encounter, someone among the Vigilante group members shot my son with live ammunition and he died immediately.
I have the video clips with me and I will provide them as evidence to prove my allegations.”
“I’ve filed and forwarded my complaints to the relevant security authority concerned and government officials to inform them and seek justice over the death of my son.”
“I’m appealing to the government to arrest the vigilante officials and make a deep investigation on the matter to fish out those behind the killing.”
Daily Post reports that a violent clash during the recent Sallah celebration in Bauchi had left at least four people dead, including the son of a traditional ruler.
It was gathered that the clash which occurred between two local security groups, Yan Ba Beli, an armed group fighting bandits, and a group of hunters accompanying the District Head of Miri, also left many injured.
The clash was said to have occurred during a traditional procession to the Government House, last Wednesday where the Yan Ba Beli group reportedly disrupted the procession, leading to a confrontation.
It was said that Yan Ba Beli disrupted the procession without provocation, assaulting some of the horse riders with sticks, which angered the traditional ruler’s entourage.
The hunters accompanying the District Head in retaliation were said to have fired their dane guns into the air, hitting two Yan Ba Beli members, leading to further escalation of the incident.
In the melee that ensued, the son of the District Head was said to have been hit by a sharp object which inflicted a serious injury on his head leading to his death.
Meanwhile, the Police and the vigilante agency are yet to confirm the incident as of the time of writing this report.
