The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in Plateau State has asked Inspector General of Police Tunji Disu to investigate claims that officers from Police Mobile Force 81 killed a Fulani herder and damaged a Fulani settlement in Bassa Local Government Area.
In a petition signed by state chairman Ibrahim Yusuf Babayo, the association alleged that MOPOL 81 personnel fired at herders near the Maraban Dare community on Tuesday. MACBAN said Adamu Mato was killed, while Abba Jafar and Adamu Abubakar suffered injuries.
Quick facts
- MACBAN alleges that MOPOL 81 officers shot at herders in the Maraban Dare area of Bassa Local Government Area.
- Adamu Mato was reported killed on 20 October 2026, while two other herders were said to have been wounded.
- The association also alleges property destruction in a Fulani community and calls for an independent inquiry.
- MACBAN wants any personnel found responsible for unlawful acts to face accountability.
Babayo said mobile police officers subsequently entered the Fulani community and destroyed property. He described the alleged action as an attempt to frighten herders and undermine their commercial activity and means of earning a living.
Witness accounts cited in the petition said the herders had been grazing their cattle peacefully when the officers arrived at the grazing area and began shooting. The herders were allegedly forced to leave their animals behind and run for safety.
MACBAN said it was concerned that herders were allegedly becoming targets of attacks, including from security personnel. It requested a full, neutral and transparent examination of the reported killing of Mato by officers said to be attached to MOPOL 81.
The association said that, if substantiated, the incidents would conflict with Nigeria’s constitution, the Nigeria Police Force Act and the professional obligations of officers responsible for safeguarding people and property regardless of ethnicity, faith or occupation.
It urged the police chief to immediately establish an independent investigation into the conduct of MOPOL 81 personnel in Plateau State. The petition also called for the identification and punishment of any officers found to have committed unlawful killings, property damage, theft or other violations.
MACBAN sought justice for Mato’s family and other alleged victims, while asking police personnel deployed in Plateau State to perform their constitutional duties professionally, fairly and without bias against any ethnic or religious community.
The group further called for urgent steps to rebuild public trust in the Nigeria Police Force and avert a further rise in tensions in the affected areas. It said the police chief’s record on professional standards, accountability and human-rights protection gave it confidence that the petition would receive prompt attention in the interests of justice, peace and national unity.
