THE Kogi State Police Command has confirmed an attack on Government Secondary School, Iluke Bunu in Kabba-Bunu Local Government Area of the state, saying three persons were killed during the invasion by armed men.
The command in a statement on Wednesday, June 10, shortly after the incident, said the attackers stormed the community on about 40 motorcycles with the suspected intention of abducting students and residents.
The statement, signed by the command’s Public Relations Officer, Saliu Oyiza, said operatives received a distress call at about 10:00am and immediately mobilised a joint security response.
According to the police, personnel from the Kabba ‘A’ Division, the Police Mobile Force, tactical teams, soldiers, and local vigilantes engaged the attackers in a gun duel, forcing them to flee into surrounding bushes.
The command said one of the attackers was killed during the exchange of fire, while a member of the joint security team sustained gunshot injuries and is receiving treatment.
However, the police said preliminary investigations had yet to establish any conclusive evidence of a successful mass abduction of students or residents.
“Investigations and ongoing assessments are continuing to ascertain the full circumstances surrounding the incident,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, Daily Trust Newspaper, quoting some residents, said that the attackers invaded the school during the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and abducted some of the students.
“The major target of the attack was UBE Iluke Bunu, where students from three communities were sitting for their WAEC examination at the time of the invasion,” the source was quoted to have said.
Reacting to the incident, the Chairman of Kabba-Bunu Local Government Area, Zacchaeus Michael, a lawyer, condemned the attack, describing it as “barbaric and unacceptable.”
He said the council was working with security agencies to strengthen security in affected communities and prevent further attacks.
The ICIR reports that Nigeria has continued to witness a resurgence of school attacks and mass abductions, with armed groups increasingly targeting rural communities and schools.
Earlier today, this organisation reported how Edo State Government shut some schools in the state following intelligence that kidnappers were targetting them.
In recent weeks, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) staged nationwide protests across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) over the killing of a teacher and the abduction of pupils in Oyo and Borno States.
The protests followed the May 15, 2026, attack on three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, where armed men invaded Community Grammar School, Baptist Nursery and Primary School, and L.A. Primary School, abducting pupils and staff while killing a teacher.
The NUT also protested the abduction of students from Mussa Primary and Secondary School in Askira Uba Local Government Area, describing the attack as part of a worsening pattern of insecurity targeting schools.
The ICIR reports that school abductions, once largely concentrated in the North-East and North-West, have now spread to other regions, raising fresh concerns over the safety of educational institutions across Nigeria.
Between 2014 and 2024, over 1,000 students were abducted in various school nationwide, including the Chibok girls in 2014, Dapchi in 2018, Kankara in 2020, Jangebe in 2021, Kuriga in 2024, and Papiri in Niger State in 2025.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M