Heavily armed bandits stormed the Nasarawa area of Damba community, located on the outskirts of [Gusau](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gusau) metropolis in [Zamfara State](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zamfara_State).
The attackers moved into the settlement during the night and took up positions at key points, apparently to hinder any rescue effort from neighbouring villages.
A woman who wished to remain anonymous told Daily Trust that the bandits entered Nasarawa around 1 a.m., leapt over a fence and forced their way into her home while firing sporadically.
"The bandits attacked our area around 1 a.m. and jumped into my house, but we were saved by God. They later left without harming anyone, yet bullets littered the courtyard of our compound," she recounted.
Another resident, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the gunmen arrived at about 1 a.m. and went door‑to‑door, knocking and demanding to know who was inside each house.
"They went door to door, knocking and asking for somebody in the houses. People told them the person they were looking for was not there," he said.
"They then started shooting intermittently and positioned themselves strategically," the witness added.
He further noted that the bandits eventually turned their attention to stealing livestock.
"We heard them discussing how to rustle animals. Some said the problem was that the animals were across the main road. They then jumped into a nearby school," he explained.
The resident said the perpetrators later shifted to rustling smaller animals in the Nasarawa area but fled when members of the [Civilian Joint Task Force](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Joint_Task_Force) and police stormed the location and engaged them.
He also claimed the bandits passed through an army security checkpoint situated in the bush.
"The army checkpoint stationed at Nasarawa, along the cemetery, is not functioning properly. They should have stopped the bandits, but they allowed them to pass," he alleged.
"We were comfortable with the previous army commander before he was redeployed. The current commander is focused on people going to farms; they did not let us access our farms," he added.
In a related incident, heavily armed bandits blocked the busy Gusau‑Sokoto road at Kuka Mairahhu in Talata Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
One victim said commuters were forced to stop and park at the military base in Fangaltama.
"The bandits put us in the middle, blocking both the front and rear, including the military checkpoint. We were all stranded," he narrated.
Another female victim described her ordeal, saying she became traumatised after her vehicle broke down while the road was blocked.
"I was traumatised when our car developed a fault and the bandits blocked the road. People were stranded and lost focus," she said.
"After we thought the road had reopened, the two cars that passed before us were abducted. We found the doors of those cars open, but no one was seen anywhere nearby or far away," she added.
When approached for comment, the Zamfara State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Yazid Abubakar, said he had not yet received any official reports on the incidents.
"I didn’t receive any reports on that, but I will confirm and get back to you," DSP Yazid said.