Ten police officers attached to the 44 Police Mobile Force (PMF), Abuja, were killed in Kebbi State after they confronted a heavily armed bandit force reportedly advancing on the Makuku area of Sakaba Local Government Area on August 10, 2026.
The officers, who were on special duty in the area, were reportedly confronted by hundreds of suspected bandits travelling on motorcycles, in an encounter that eventually became one of the deadliest attacks on security personnel in the state.
A recently document titled ‘A Testament of Courage, Sacrifice and Service,’ which recounts the events surrounding the encounter, portrays the slain officers as having made a final stand despite being overwhelmingly outnumbered.
According to the account, the attackers were estimated to have arrived on about 250 motorcycles, with each motorcycle allegedly carrying about three suspected bandits, many of them heavily armed.
The account said the warning reached the Special Intervention Squad (SIS) personnel only minutes before the attackers arrived.
“At that moment, the SIS personnel were faced with an extremely difficult choice. They could have withdrawn from the location to preserve their own lives, leaving the vulnerable residents of Makuku exposed to the advancing attackers,” the report said.
But, according to the report: “Instead, they chose to stand.”
The account said the officers knew they were heavily outnumbered and understood the danger confronting them but remained conscious of their responsibility to protect the community.
“Yet, they remained conscious of the oath they had taken and the responsibility entrusted to them as members of the Nigeria Police Force,” it said.
‘They stood their ground’
When the suspected bandits launched their assault, the police personnel reportedly engaged them in a fierce gun battle.
GRAPHIC PHOTOS: Images from the aftermath of the Nigerian police officers who were brutally murdered while defending Kebbi community from hundreds of bandits View pictures: https://t.me/SaharaReporters1/4312
The ‘Testament of Courage, Sacrifice and Service’ said the officers refused to abandon the community they had been deployed to protect.
“Rather than abandon the people they were deployed to protect, they confronted the attackers and fought back with courage, discipline and determination.”
The account said the officers were able to resist and repel the assault, while a significant number of suspected bandits were reportedly neutralised.
It added that some of the attackers’ bodies were allegedly taken away by surviving members of the group on motorcycles, while others were left behind. Some bodies were also reportedly thrown into a river.
The Nigeria Police Force had earlier said 17 suspected bandits were neutralised and four motorcycles belonging to the attackers destroyed during the encounter.
The resistance, however, came at a heavy cost.
Ten police personnel were killed during the encounter, alongside two civilians.
The officers were identified as ASP Bala Buba, 43; Inspectors Saminu Sulaiman, 40; Solomon Jatau, 39; Ayuba Hassain, 38; Umar Yahuza, 37; Auwal Sani, 38; Adamu Abdullahi, 35; Abdullahi Magaji, 43; Sergeant Jimoh Momo, 35; and Corporal Ukpong Otrukmj, 34.
The two civilians killed were identified as Mohammadu Magwawara, 50, and Muhammadu Tiritiri, 45, while another civilian, Shehu Abubakar, 41, sustained serious gunshot injuries.
The report described the deaths not merely as casualties but as the loss of men who died while performing their official duties.
“These were not merely numbers on a casualty report. They were officers who had families, loved ones, aspirations and lives beyond the battlefield,” it said.
“They gave their lives while performing the duty they had sworn to perform: protecting lives and property and serving the nation.”
Ammunition ran out as officers called for help
The account of the battle also comes amid earlier revelations by police sources that the officers eventually ran out of ammunition while fighting the attackers.
SaharaReporters previously reported that the personnel made urgent requests for air support and ground reinforcements as the battle intensified, but the assistance allegedly did not arrive before they were overwhelmed.
One source familiar with the incident said:
“The officers were reportedly ambushed by more than 300 bandits.”
The source added: “They fought back but eventually ran out of ammunition. They desperately called for air support and ground reinforcements. The help they needed never came.”
The Testament of Courage, Sacrifice and Service similarly states that the officers called for reinforcement during the confrontation but continued fighting with the personnel and resources available to them.
“However, the reinforcement did not arrive at the time it was urgently required,” it said.
It said reinforcement eventually arrived after the engagement had already taken a significant toll on the team.
The police situation report earlier obtained by SaharaReporters also stated that the attackers carted away several weapons belonging to the security personnel after the battle, including 10 AK-47 rifles, one RPG rifle and two riot guns, alongside other arms and ammunition.
Police later recovered bodies
Following the encounter, a team led by the Divisional Police Officer of Sakaba Division, DSP Umaru Bagudu, reportedly visited the scene and found the bodies of the slain officers.
The bodies were subsequently evacuated to the General Hospital, Dirin Daji, where they were confirmed dead.
The injured civilian, Shehu Abubakar, was referred to the Federal Teaching Hospital, Birnin Kebbi, for further treatment.
Additional police personnel were later deployed to the area to reinforce security and pursue fleeing members of the criminal group.
The slain officers were subsequently buried in their respective hometowns.
IGP: ‘They died doing what they swore an oath to do’
At a memorial parade held at the Force Headquarters in Abuja on Monday, Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, described the slain personnel as gallant officers who died while performing their constitutional responsibility.
Disu said the officers “died doing what they swore an oath to do; to serve, to protect, and to defend lives and property.”
He also described their deaths as a painful loss to the Force and the nation while highlighting the reported operational success against the attackers.
According to him, 17 suspected bandits were neutralised and four motorcycles were destroyed during the encounter.
The police chief also acknowledged the devastating effect of the deaths on the officers’ families.
“Behind every fallen officer is a family that lost a husband, father, son, brother or loved one.”
Addressing the families, Disu said, “We grieve with you, we stand with you, and we will not abandon you.”
He assured them that the sacrifice of their loved ones would continue to be honoured by the Nigeria Police Force.
‘They stood when they could have fled’
The Testament of Courage, Sacrifice and Service called for the officers to receive appropriate recognition and for the circumstances surrounding the Makuku battle to be formally documented and investigated.
It said the families of the deceased deserved to know that their loved ones’ sacrifices had not been forgotten, while surviving personnel involved in the encounter should also be recognised.
The report urged that, where applicable and subject to official verification, commendations, welfare support and compensation should be considered for the affected personnel and families of those killed.
It also warned against allowing the incident to disappear without a full record.
“The story of Makuku should not disappear into silence,” the report said.
“It should be documented. It should be investigated and officially recorded.”
The account ultimately framed the Makuku encounter as a test of the commitment of police personnel deployed in some of the country’s most dangerous environments.
“They stood when they could have fled. They fought when they were outnumbered. They sacrificed when their own lives were at risk. They upheld the oath they took to protect lives and property,” it said.
The August 10 attack left 10 police officers and two civilians dead, but also raised questions about the adequacy of ammunition, reinforcement and operational support available to personnel confronting heavily armed criminal groups.
For the families of the 10 officers, however, the central legacy of Makuku is the loss of loved ones who did not leave their post when the threat arrived.
“Their rifles were not simply weapons they carried. They represented a responsibility they had accepted,” the report said. “Their uniforms represented a commitment to service. And their decision to stand represented the oath they had taken.”
(SaharaReporters)