Three worshippers were killed in a stabbing attack at a mosque in Kado Bimko, First Avenue area of Gwarinpa District, Abuja, in the early hours of Monday.
A witness, Muhammad Auwal, said the suspect, identified as Laminde Boka, attacked worshippers who were waiting for early morning prayers.
According to Auwal, the first victim, an elderly man known as Alhaji Wanzam, was cleaning the mosque around 4am when he was stabbed by the suspect.
“The attacker, believed to be under the influence of drugs, later stabbed another man who attempted to confront him. The victim, a grinding machine operator in a nearby market, died on the way to the hospital,” he said.
Auwal added that the suspect chased other worshippers and stabbed a third man to death after he fell while trying to escape.
He said the suspect was later overpowered and lynched by sympathisers at the scene.
The remains of Alhaji Wanzam were taken to his hometown in Gezawa, Kano State, while the second victim was buried in Katsina State. The third victim, who hailed from Gombe State, was taken to Kubwa General Hospital in Abuja as his relatives could not be immediately traced.
The Village Head of Kado Bimko, Malam Ibrahim Isiaku, said the incident caused panic in the area, forcing many residents to flee, while the mosque was temporarily shut.
He added that a meeting involving mosque officials, market leaders and managers of nearby facilities resolved that no one would henceforth be allowed to sleep within the mosque premises.
Efforts to reach the Divisional Police Officer in Gwarinpa were unsuccessful, but a senior police officer confirmed the incident.
