No Train Was Attacked By Bandits In Kaduna ― Police

Kaduna State police command has debunked reports on social media claiming bandits had attacked a train along Kaduna-Abuja route.

Tribune Online reports that on Monday the social media was inundated with the story of a train with passengers being attacked by bandits.

However, reacting to the reports on Tuesday, the police command through the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Muhammad Jalige said there was no such attack.

He noted that it was just a rumour, adding that the train which left Abuja in the evening arrived its final destination safely.

According to him, some miscreants threw stones to the said train along Rijana which shattered the windows of the train.

“It was not a bullet or bow and arrow, what they threw are not aggressive weapons. It was not an attack, the train was moving.

“Our men in Rijana are on top of the situation. An investigation would be conducted and anyone found to be involved in the incident would be punished.

“So far no suspect has been arrested but our men have been deployed in the area to trail the suspects,” Jalige said.

In the same vein, the Kaduna State government has also denied that a passenger train was attacked in Rijana in Kaduna.

In a statement issued by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Alhaji Abdullahi Sani on Tuesday described the story as “a concoction and fabrication of mischief-makers.”

“From all checks with security agencies and officials of the Nigeria Railway Corporation, the report that bandits attacked the train is not only false but a concoction and fabrication of mischief-makers,” the statement added.

According to the Permanent Secretary, there is no “denying the fact, that the state is ridden with security challenges but it is uncharitable, inhuman and irresponsible to advance falsehood for personal satisfaction that insecurity lingers in the state.”

The ministry regretted “how some elites are at the forefront of sharing and circulating fake news and inciting materials for reasons best known to their religious and political persuasions.

“It is unfortunate and regrettable, that what is now news and worthy of celebration is negative imagination to instil fear and confusion in the hearts of the citizenry,” he added.