Unidentified gunmen kidnapped four people late on Friday, including the village head of Nasarawa-Burkullu community in Nigeria’s northwestern Zamfara state, a local official said on Saturday.

Muhammad Bukuyum said the victims also included three farmers, and that the assailants had demanded a ransom, without giving further details.

Armed gangs, often referred to locally as bandits, have wreaked havoc across northwest Nigeria in recent years, kidnapping thousands, killing hundreds and making it unsafe to travel by road or to farm in some areas, reports REUTERS.