Benin – Sonsoro’s Board of Directors attacked by individuals: his account from his hospital bed
The district chief of Sonsoro, in the municipality of Kandi, is currently hospitalized at the zone hospital, after being violently attacked on Friday, June 13, 2025, in his farm located at Woyorgou Bansou, a locality under his jurisdiction.
The information was relayed by Fraternité FM and confirmed by the local media Alibori.bj. According to the victim’s initial statements, Sanni Barou Hanmi, the attack is linked to a land dispute dating back more than a decade.
As he was preparing to plow his field along with a few relatives, around sixty individuals armed with homemade guns and bladed weapons allegedly invaded the land, contesting the ownership of the domain already granted by a judgement in his favor in 2014.
The district chief and his companions were beaten up. “They broke my left arm. I have wounds on my back and buttocks. I can’t even sit,” he shared from his hospital bed. Another relative, also injured, was admitted to the emergency room at the same time as the municipal authority.
The assailants also allegedly stole an amount of approximately 300,000 CFA francs. According to the victim, they recorded videos and audios in which he was forced to declare that he had suffered no loss.
This is not the first time that Sanni Barou Hanmi has been targeted in this dispute. In 2024, his children were threatened in a similar context.
As of today, the health condition of the district chief has reportedly stabilized, according to medical sources. An investigation has been opened to identify the perpetrators of this attack and shed light on the circumstances of this act of violence.