Suspected Boko Haram militants killed a customs officer, Usman Gombe, in a bold attack on a customs house in Geidam town, Geidam Local Government Area, Yobe State.
The attack occurred on October 21, 2023, leaving the town in shock and dread.
Under cover of darkness, the militants seized the customs house along the Maine Soroa route around 10 p.m.
According to witnesses, the perpetrators came at the site in a Volkswagen Golf and a Land Rover, commencing a lethal assault by firing their firearms indiscriminately.
“They struck when they were sure the customs officers had retired home. Panicked by the rain of bullets, the officers scampered for safety, some escaped through the gate, while others scaled the fence,” a security source told Daily Trust.
“Unfortunately, one of the officers, Usman Gombe, was shot dead while attempting to climb the fence,”
He said the assailants also burnt down the customs patrol van, a generator, and part of the customs house building.
“This is the second time that the Boko Haram insurgents are killing the customs officers. Last month, an officer Babalola, and his junior officer, were abducted and later killed by the insurgents,” he said.
Residents of the town said that the activities of Boko Haram insurgents on the outskirts of Geidam had increased in recent days.
“They collect taxes from farmers and herdsmen a few kilometers from the town and nobody is doing anything,” one of the traders alleged.
“Instead, the security operatives have relocated over 17 checkpoints into the town where they also taxed traders that brought goods through the same route. We are in difficult condition in this town.”
