Seven injured as gunmen attack traders on Bukuru Expressway in Plateau
At least seven traders were injured after gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying people returning from Kara Market along Bukuru Expressway in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, police have said.
The Plateau State Police Command said the attack occurred at about 4:30pm on Sunday, October 4, and that seven injured victims were traced to the Military Clinic at Rukuba Barracks in Jos, where they were receiving treatment.
Police said preliminary investigation indicated that the vehicle was carrying traders returning from Kara Market in Bukuru when it came under attack.
Police open investigation
Plateau police spokesperson SP Alfred Alabo said Commissioner of Police Ayodeji Faniyan directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of investigations to take over the case.
The command said tactical and anti-robbery teams had been deployed around the area and intelligence gathering intensified to identify and arrest those responsible.
Police have not publicly identified the attackers or announced a motive.
Separate reports say one person was killed
Other reports give a higher casualty figure.
Premium Times and Vanguard, citing community and Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria sources, reported that one person was killed and seven others injured.
However, the police account reviewed by IDNN confirms seven injured victims and does not report a death.
IDNN is therefore treating the reported death as unconfirmed by police rather than presenting it as an established casualty.
Accounts differ on attack time and location
The reports also differ on the exact timing and location of the shooting.
Police place the incident at about 4:30pm along Bukuru Expressway.
Other accounts place it later and identify more specific points around Yelwa Club Junction, the Total Filling Station and Bukuru Low-Cost.
Those details remain unresolved.
IDNN is therefore retaining the police-confirmed broader location and time while keeping more precise claims source-dependent.
Plateau government condemns attack
The Plateau State Government has condemned the attack and directed security agencies to investigate the identities and motive of those responsible.
The government also urged residents to remain calm and avoid reprisals while security agencies pursue the investigation.
That warning is significant in a state where violent incidents can quickly acquire communal interpretations before the facts are established.
No ethnic, communal or militia responsibility has been confirmed in this case.
Route security comes under scrutiny
The attack raises questions about security for traders and other road users travelling from Kara Market and through the Bukuru corridor.
MACBAN’s Plateau leadership has called for an investigation and stronger security for traders and herders using the route.
The key accountability questions are who carried out the attack, whether the vehicle or route was specifically targeted, what security presence existed along the corridor, and whether the reported death can be independently confirmed.
For now, the established facts are that gunmen attacked a vehicle carrying traders returning from Kara Market, police have confirmed seven injured people, security teams have been deployed and an investigation is underway.
What remains unresolved is whether anyone was killed, the exact attack point and time beyond the police account, and the identity and motive of the attackers.