At least 15 individuals, including women and children, have been reported missing following an assault on an 18-passenger bus traveling from Zaki/Biam in Benue State to Maihura in Bali Local Government Area of Taraba State. The attackers, believed to be vigilante members, targeted the bus along the Donga-Mararaban-Baissa road in Donga Local Government Area of Taraba State.
The bus driver, Mr. Mpuuga Mbaave, narrowly escaped harm with machete wounds and recounted the incident to journalists. He mentioned encountering individuals in vigilante attire near Mararaba, leading him to park the vehicle. A passerby advised him to continue, citing the vigilantes’ retrieval of their fallen colleagues’ bodies. However, upon closer approach, the vigilantes turned hostile, accusing the passengers, primarily Tiv people, of killing their members. This led to an attack on the passengers, with some being forced out of the bus, instructed to lie down, and subsequently assaulted with machetes.
The driver and his conductor managed to flee the scene, despite sustaining injuries from the attackers’ machetes. The incident was confirmed by Hon. Ezra Voka, Chairman of Donga Local Government Council, who was actively involved in the search for the missing individuals in nearby forests.
