A police officer has been killed and several houses including a police station were razed, after armed bandits stormed Tse Harga community of Katsina-Ala Local Government Area in Benue State.

The gunmen suspected to be loyalists of the slain criminal kingpin, Terwase Akwaza popularly known as ‘Gana’ stormed the area in the early hours of Thursday and shot sporadically in the air, Daily Trust reported.

They were also said to have burnt a police pick-up van.

A resident confirmed the incident to the outlet but said he could not ascertain the number of people killed.

Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), in collaboration with the Police were said to have killed one of the suspected bandits in a swift counter-response to the attack and recovered over 200 rounds of ammunition.

Also confirming the incident, the Council Chairman of Katsina-Ala, Alfred Atera, claimed that youths who formed themselves into a vigilante group were the major targets by bandits.

“They stormed the area (Tse Harga), burned the police station, police pick-up van and killed a policeman there,” Mr. Atera said.

“They also burnt several houses which I cannot ascertain now. But as for the locals, nobody was killed.”

The chairman, who noted that many residents had fled the area, acknowledged that the rapid intervention of security agencies and soldiers restored calm to the community.

Force Commander OPWS, Adeyemi Yekini, told the outlet that “we are in operation around that axis but I can’t comment further on an ongoing operation.

“You may wish to contact the Directorate of Defence Information, Defence Headquarters in Abuja, thanks.”

On her part, the state police spokesperson Catherine Anene, also confirmed the killing of a policeman.

Mrs. Anene, however, stated that the details of the attack were still sketchy.