Judge Flees Through Window as Bandits Storm Katsina Courtroom

​KATSINA — A palpable atmosphere of panic has gripped Gwarjo village in Matazu Local Government Area of Katsina State following a brazen daylight invasion by suspected bandits who targeted a local Shari’ah court.

​The presiding judge, Mohammed Muktar, narrowly cheated death or a high-profile abduction after executing a dramatic escape through a window moments before heavily armed assailants stormed the courtroom.

​According to eyewitness accounts, the chaos unfolded around midday while court proceedings were actively underway. The gunmen rode into the community and marched directly toward the court premises, shooting indiscriminately and sending litigants, court staff, and residents scrambling for safety.

​Sources revealed that Judge Muktar caught sight of the approaching attackers from a distance. Acting with split-second intuition alongside court personnel, he abandoned the bench and squeezed through a back window.

​”The bandits entered the courtroom, shooting indiscriminately and repeatedly asking where the judge was,” a local resident recounted. “Fortunately, he had already escaped through the window, and a commercial motorcyclist helped him flee the area before they could corner him”.

​Upon discovering that their primary target had vanished, the enraged gunmen reportedly issued chilling threats, vowing to hunt down and kill the jurist if he ever dared to return to the community to preside over judicial matters.

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​The incident highlights a growing and alarming trend of security vulnerabilities facing the judicial sector and frontline communities in Nigeria’s North-West region. The attack comes hot on the heels of similar high-profile abductions targeting judicial officers, including the recent kidnapping of a High Court Judge, Justice Faruku Hassan, in Kebbi State, whose captors have demanded a multi-million-naira ransom. Matazu Local Government Area has also borne the brunt of recurring insecurity, notably marked by previous high-casualty raids and abductions within the council area.

​As of press time, the Katsina State Police Command has yet to issue an official statement regarding the attack, and calls directed to the command’s spokesperson remained unanswered. Meanwhile, terrified residents have renewed desperate pleas for the federal and state governments to deploy security reinforcements to safeguard rural communities and public institutions.