MAKURDI, Nigeria: At least 10 people died during coordinated attacks by suspected rival cult groups in Makurdi, Benue State, between late Sunday, May 10, 2026, and early Monday, May 11, 2026.
Okay News reports that Benue State Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, confirmed the incident. Emenari stated the command had recorded six fatalities and said the command’s spokesperson would provide further details.
The attacks occurred in the High-Level and Wurukum areas of the city between 10:00 PM WAT on Sunday and 2:00 AM WAT on Monday. Armed youths on motorcycles invaded Owerri Street and Onitsha Street, shooting a man sitting outside his house and killing a local shoemaker near City Bay.
The Chairman of Makurdi Local Government Area, Joseph Keffi, described the killings as “ugly, pathetic and condemnable.” Keffi said the violence stemmed from a disagreement involving a cult member from the North Bank area who fled to stay with a friend in High-Level.
“Unfortunately, because his friends and relatives accommodated him, they were attacked and killed even though they were not cult members,” Keffi said. He added that the attackers called four sleeping people out of a compound and shot them, before killing four others who came out after hearing the gunshots.
Keffi said efforts were ongoing to strengthen security through collaboration with security agencies, vigilante groups, and Civil Protection Guards. He noted that a known individual had been terrorizing Makurdi. “This is someone who was once arrested by the police and later released. We hope the police will do the needful and ensure he is rearrested,” he said.
The incident follows a separate attack in the Agwan Jukun area of Makurdi one week earlier, which resulted in three deaths. The bodies of the recent victims have been deposited at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital and Madonna Hospital morgues.
