Boko Haram Gunmen Sack Borno Town, Slit Throats Of Residents In House-To-House Raid

BEVERLY HILLS, CA, January 16, (THEWILL) -  Boko Haram gunmen stormed Banki, a border town with Cameroon in Bama Local Government Area of Borno State in the early hours of Wednesday, chasing away policemen at the local station and slitting the throats of their victims in a house-to-house raid of the residential area of the town.

Though details of the casualty figure was not available when filing this report, the Borno State Commissioner of Police, Lawan Tanko, said one policeman was killed and many others were injured in the one-hour siege on the village.

The gunmen were said to have stormed the town on motorcycles and Toyota Hilux vehicles from the nearby bushes and were said to be fully armed with sophisticated weapons .

Residents of the town said the hoodlums on arrival immediately sacked the police station to render the town vulnerable to the subsequent onslaught.

A resident, John Samuel,who was fortunate to escape from being attacked told journalists in Maiduguri that "They drove from the neighbouring bush using motorcycles and carrying sophisticated weapons around 2am," He said that the attackers used rocket propellers to attack the police station which caught fire immediately.

"Some of the policemen tried to engaged them in a shoot out but they realised that the invaders had superior power so they had to run.

" he said.
He said that the attackers also raided homes killing and maiming residents before fleeing into the bush under the cover of darkness.

The state Commissioner of Police,Alhaji Lawal Tanko, while confirming the attack, said: "I can confirm there was an attack on Banki town by suspected members of the Boko Haram group in the early hours of Wednesday in which my station in Banki was partially affected.

I lost an officer and some sustained injuries.
"