A tragic attack on a group of wedding guests travelling through Plateau State took a miraculous turn for one of the victims, Abas Rufa’i, who narrowly escaped death and helped rescue several others from a brutal mob assault.
The incident occurred on Friday, June 20, in the Mangun community, located in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State.
The group of 31 travellers, consisting of men, women, and children, had set out from the Basawa-Anguwan Rimi community in Zaria Local Government Area of Kaduna State. They were headed to Qua’an Pan Local Government Area for a wedding ceremony, commuting in a bus owned by Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.
According to Rufa’i, what began as a joyous journey quickly turned into a nightmare. He recounted his harrowing experience during a visit by Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani to the injured survivors at the 44 Army Reference Hospital in Kaduna.
Rufa’i explained that the bus driver had parked by the roadside in Mangun to ask for directions. As the first person to step out of the bus, he approached a group of locals nearby. However, their unfriendly and suspicious demeanour immediately raised his alarm.
“I sensed danger when I saw the hostility in their eyes,” he recalled. “So I decided not to speak and began walking back towards the bus.”
As he turned away, he overheard a chilling conversation. “They said, ‘We should kill them all and burn the vehicle,’” Rufa’i said. At that moment, the mob began attacking the bus, prompting the driver to try and reverse, but the road had already been barricaded with heavy stones and logs.
With instinctive quick thinking, Rufa’i managed to distance himself slightly from the bus. “I was wearing a loose gown over short trousers. I quietly slipped off the gown so I wouldn’t be recognised as part of the group,” he narrated. “Then, slowly and without drawing attention, I crept away from the chaos while the attackers had already set the bus on fire with people still inside.”
Still in shock, Rufa’i found a passing motorcyclist and asked to be taken to a nearby police station. Not wanting to raise suspicion, he told the rider that he had a personal matter to report. While en route, he spotted a military checkpoint and requested the rider to stop.
However, the motorcyclist, upon realising the sensitive nature of the situation, quickly turned back to the community before Rufa’i could even pay him. Undeterred, Rufa’i rushed to the soldiers at the checkpoint and told them about the ongoing attack on his fellow travellers.
Reacting swiftly, the soldiers mobilised and accompanied him back to the scene. By the time they arrived, the bus was engulfed in flames. Despite the horror, the soldiers were able to rescue around 18 people who had sustained varying degrees of injury. Sadly, several others had already succumbed to the assault.
The tragic incident has drawn widespread condemnation, raising concerns over rising mob violence and insecurity in parts of Plateau State. The bravery and quick thinking of Rufa’i, however, have been hailed as instrumental in saving the lives of many.
Governor Uba Sani commended his courage and reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to supporting victims and improving intercommunal peace.