Unidentified assailants have killed a Point of Sale operator, Aliyu Musa, during an early morning attack in Minna, Niger State.
The attackers were said to have forced their way into Musa’s residence in the T Mama area of the state capital in the early hours of Monday.
Reports indicated that the assailants rejected offers of money and pleas from the victim, allegedly telling him they had come only to kill him. Musa was reportedly stabbed in the stomach before being repeatedly attacked with a machete.
Neighbours who heard his cries for help rushed to the scene but were unable to apprehend the attackers, who fled immediately after the assault. The victim was initially taken to the Tudun-Wada Police Station and later rushed to Minna General Hospital, where he was confirmed dead before receiving medical attention.
The deceased’s elder brother, Malam Ibrahim Kolo, confirmed the incident, describing the killing as tragic. He said Musa was buried at a Muslim burial ground at about 10 a.m. on Monday.
“It is very sad and pathetic. I believe my brother’s killers will surely be arrested and brought to justice,” Kolo said.
The spokesperson for the Niger State Police Command, Wasiu Abiodun, confirmed the incident on Tuesday, noting that the attackers had fled before police operatives arrived at the scene.
According to him, the police received a report of suspected culpable homicide around the Mandela area of Minna at about 3 a.m., prompting a patrol team from the Tudun-Wada Division to respond.
Abiodun said the victim, identified as Aliyu Musa, aged 34 and a POS operator, was attacked by two suspects. He added that examination revealed the victim sustained gunshot injuries to the chest as well as a machete cut to the head.
He explained that Musa and his wife raised an alarm during the attack, which attracted neighbours, but the suspects escaped without stealing anything from the house.
The police spokesman said items recovered from the scene included an iron cutter believed to have been used to break through a window and a cutlass.
He added that Musa was taken to Minna General Hospital where he was later confirmed dead, noting that investigations are ongoing while efforts are being made to apprehend the attackers.
