Updated

Witnesses say four people have been killed in an attack on a northeast Nigeria cattle market.

The fighting late Wednesday happened in Potiskum, a town in Nigeria's Yobe state.

Witnesses said the gunmen started shooting in the market, trying to steal cattle. They said three people at the market were killed, as a fourth man suspected to be part of the group of robbers was set afire while still alive and died of his burns.

Police confirmed the attack happened but said they had no details.

The attack does not appear to be the work of the radical Islamist sect Boko Haram, which is waging an increasingly violent sectarian fight against Nigeria's weak central government. Cattle raids remain common across the north, as herdsmen lead teams across the arid plains.