The Police in Niger on Monday confirmed  the repel of attack by bandits on Malfa village in Shiroro Local Government Area of the state.

Alhaji Adamu Usman, the state Commissioner of Police, confirmed the development in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna.

Usman said that the armed bandits numbering about 100 attempted to invade Malfa from Dogon Gona Forest, but added that they were resisted by personnel of “Operation Puff Adder” policing the area.

“Personnel of `Operation Puff Adder’ were strategically stationed in the area to prevent influx of bandits from neighbouring states,” he said.

Usman explained that the police engaged the bandits in a gun battle, forcing them to move towards Lukube enroute Dogon Gona Forest owing to police superior power and manoeuvres.

According to him, the bandits re-group and launched a counter attack on the villagers, stressing that one Abdullahi Masaki had a gunshot wound on his leg.

He said the victim had been taken to Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida Hospital, Minna, where he received medical attention.

The commissioner said that there had been massive reinforcement of other security agencies in the area.

He said the Kaduna state police command had been alerted about the movement of the bandits towards the state in order to ward them off.

No casualty was recorded on the part of police during the attack.