Plateau wedding massacre must not be buried
Two months after the gruesome murder of 13 wedding guests in Mangun community, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, the 20 suspects charged with the killings have been granted bail. The victims of the attack, men, women, and children were travelling from Basawa in Sabon Gari LGA of Kaduna State to Qua’an Pan in […]
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Two months after the gruesome murder of 13 wedding guests in Mangun community, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, the 20 suspects charged with the killings have been granted bail. The victims of the attack, men, women, and children were travelling from Basawa in Sabon Gari LGA of Kaduna State to Qua’an Pan in Plateau for a wedding when they missed their way and landed in Mangun. What followed was a bloodbath.
The travellers, clearly identifiable by the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) branded bus they were travelling in were, according to government officials, ‘mistaken for bandits’ by local youths. But survivors of the attack recount that they had stopped to ask for directions and instead of being assisted, the youths of Mangun encircled and lynched some of them including the groom’s father and brother.
The attack sparked widespread outrage across Nigeria and beyond, especially since this is not an isolated incident. Plateau State has gained notoriety for blocking highways and lynching innocent travellers; heinous crimes that have gone on for decades without consequences.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had at the time of the Mangun attack directed the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) to work with other security and intelligence agencies to ensure those responsible were held accountable. The President promised the culprits would not go unpunished and insisted that freedom of movement by all citizens is non-negotiable. International and human right organisations such as thenAmnesty International and civil society groups had echoed similar calls while the Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani promised to personally pursue justice for the victims.
In what appeared as commendable, the police in Plateau State soon made arrests and in suit No. PLD/115CR/2025, arraigned 20 suspects on a four-count charge of criminal conspiracy, mischief with dangerous weapons, culpable homicide, and causing grievous harm. It alleged that the suspects had killed and burnt 13 people, crimes contrary to Sections 59, 220, 313, and 189 of the Plateau State Law 2017.
But the judicial process soon took a troubling turn. Appearing before Justice Boniface Ngyong in July, the suspects pleaded not guilty and defence counsel sought bail. But Justice Ngyong advised that the application be filed before a vacation judge as the court was about to proceed on vacation. Then in a court order dated August 14, vacation judge, Nafisa Musa, considered a motion on notice filed by the defence counsel and granted bail to the suspects pending the resumption of proceedings on October 13.
Her decision followed a motion by the defence council which urged the court to take cognisance of the legal advice issued by the Director of Public Prosecution in the chambers of the Attorney-General of Plateau State which absolved all the applicants of any culpability in relation to the offences contained in the charges.
Relying on the legal advice, the defence council prayed the court to either discharge the applicants unconditionally or, in the alternative, order their immediate release pending the resumption of proceedings on October 13.
This legal advice, it said was binding on all prosecuting authorities including the Commissioner of Police who investigated the killings and effected arrests on the suspects.
While many Nigerians were irked as to why the court will grant bail on a murder case, what should worry many is the legal advice from the Attorney General of the state that effectively undermined the police investigation, and the survivor accounts of what happened on the day of the attack when they watched their loved ones butchered and burnt. Such legal advice, coming from the prosecution that is expected to represent and defend the victims already hints at justice on its way to slipping through the cracks.
There is no doubt that the attack on the travellers was not a case of mistaken identity as the people of Mangun have portrayed. Bandits do not travel in university-branded buses but on motorbikes. No one will fault the people of Mangun if they were to face the real bandits that are constantly terrorising their communities. But transferring that kind of aggression to innocent travellers passing through their community is unacceptable and those responsible should be made to face the full wrath of the law.
There have been previous attacks such as the killing of 22 travellers returning from Bauchi in 2021 and massacred while passing through Jos and many others that have gone unpunished. The 2018 killing of Major General Mohammed Idris Alkali while passing through Dura-Du in Jos South cannot be easily forgotten. Despite military efforts in finding his remains, as well that the recovery of his car submerged in a pond and rounding up the suspects, justice remains elusive and all suspects, since granted bail, are moving freely.
This is a chance for Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang to write his name in gold by making an example of criminals who kill innocent travellers. Governor Mutfwang has a moral and political obligation to send a clear message that his administration will not tolerate barbarism. Prosecuting the killers without bias is the only way to restore faith in the rule of law and deter future atrocities.
This is equally the time for Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani to honour his promise and stand by the victims to get justice. Blaming Plateau State for not informing them of the legal processes is not enough. He must actively pursue justice and ensure accountability for his people.
We also call on the federal government, humanitarian and civil society organisations as well as journalists to monitor the judicial process in Plateau State closely. Justice must not be sacrificed at the altar of political convenience. If this culture of impunity is allowed to continue, retaliatory violence may erupt, threatening national stability and plunging Nigeria into a cycle of bloodshed.