Buhari orders probe into killing of policemen

TRACKING>>.Army, police set up joint investigation panel, say killing of cops unfortunate, avoidable

.Police say army trying to justify killing, demand whereabouts of freed kidnap kingpin

President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the Defence Headquarters to commence immediate investigation of the incident involving the troops of 93 Battalion, Takum, Taraba, State which resulted to the death of three police officers and a civilian.

Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, disclosed this when he briefed State House correspondents at the end of the meeting of the National Security Council, presided over by President Buhari at the State House, Abuja on Thursday.

Before the presidential directive, the army and police authorities had on Wednesday constituted a joint investigation panel to investigate the incident.

Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Col. Sagir Musa, in a statement on Wednesday, said the panel would be headed by the Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Criminal Investigation Department, Mike Ogbizi.

Col. Musa said that the panel would jointly investigate and report on the true circumstances surrounding the unfortunate incident in order to avert future occurrences.

However, the Chief of Staff, Air Marshal Sadique said: “The council also decided that the unfortunate incidents in Taraba State in Ibi, a committee will be setup under the Defence Headquarters to critically look into the circumstances that led to the unfortunate incident.’’

Abubakar also revealed that the council evaluated the current strategy of managing internal security operations across the country and expressed satisfaction with the current efforts aimed at restoring law and order in the country.

“We are making substantial progress in all the areas of conflicts,’’ he said.

On the issue of using technology and drones to fight crimes as earlier pledged to the South-West leaders by the President, Abubakar said technology would continue to play a very critical role in resolving security challenges in the country.

“All the services are using one technology or the other in order to ensure that our country is secured.

“So, security will continue to play a role and we are also looking at other areas of technology that are not currently in use to ensure that we put together all that is required to ensure the security of Nigeria and Nigerians,’’ he added.

The chief of air staff also reassured Nigerians that the armed forces of Nigeria and other security agencies would continue to work to ensure the security of Nigerians and to also ensure that no individual or group of individuals undermine the territorial integrity of country.

But, the army in a statement on Thursday, described the killing of three police officers and a civilian on August 6, as “quite unfortunate and could have been avoided through proper coordination and liaison.”

Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Col. Sagir Musa stated this while reacting to an earlier statement issued by the Force Public Relations officer, DCP Frank Mba.

Col Musa maintained that the suspects were taken for kidnappers after they refused to stop in three separate check points.

He explained that troops of 93 Battalion, Takum pursued and exchanged fire with some suspected kidnappers who indeed, turned out to be an Intelligence Response Team from the Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, on a covert assignment from Abuja, resulting in the death and injury of some members of the team.

The army’s statement reads in part: “On the 6th of August 2019, Nigerian Army troops, while responding to a distressed call to rescue a kidnapped victim exchanged fire with the suspected kidnappers along Ibi-Wukari Road in Taraba State.

“The suspected kidnappers numbering about 10 and driving in a white bus with registration number LAGOS MUS 564 EU refused to stop when they were halted by troops at three consecutive check points.

“The flagrant refusal of the suspected kidnappers to stop at the three checkpoints prompted a hot pursuit of the fleeing suspects by the troops and it was in this process that the suspected kidnappers who were obviously, armed opened fire at the troops sporadically, thus, prompting them to return fire.”

He further stated that in the resultant fire fight, four suspects were shot and died on the spot while four others sustained various degrees of gunshot wounds and two others are reportedly missing.

“It was only after this avoidable outcome that one of the wounded suspects disclosed the fact that they were indeed policemen dispatched from Force Headquarters, Abuja, for a covert assignment,” Col. Musa said.

He added that following inquiries by the commander of the troops that revealed that the Ibi divisional police officer was unaware of any police team dispatched to operate in the local government from Abuja, further lent credence to the distressed call from members of the community that the suspects who turned out to be policemen on a covert mission were rather suspected kidnappers.

“This incident is indeed quite unfortunate and could have been avoided through proper coordination and liaison as the police are partners in the fight against crimes, such as kidnapping amongst myriads of other internal security threats confronting our nation of which the police is the lead agency,” he added.

The army spokesman said that in order to avert future occurrences of this nature, the army headquarters and the police force headquarters have agreed to constitute a joint investigation panel to be headed by the Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Mike Ogbizi, to jointly investigate and report on the true circumstances surrounding the unfortunate incident.

He said that until the joint investigation panel concludes and submits its report, it will be premature to officially conclude and speak on the real circumstances that caused this unfortunate, but very avoidable and unfortunate incident.

The police, however, disagreed with the army’s position, with the police on Thursday accusing the army of seeking to justify the unprovoked and unwarranted murder of three police officers, a civilian and the injuries inflicted on four others with its explanation of the incident.

Force spokesman, DCP Frank Mba, in a statement on Thursday, posed the following question which according to him, the army evaded in its statement.

“The most important question arising from the Nigerian Army press release is: Where is Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume? Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume is a millionaire kidnapper arrested by the police, but paradoxically treated as a kidnap victim by the soldiers and subsequently, rescued by them. Where is he? Where is the rescued kidnapper?” Mba questioned.

He said that in the best tradition of esprit de corps, inter-agency harmony and national interest, the police would naturally have kept quiet, but that it has become imperative to set the record straight by addressing the obvious distortion of facts inherent in the press release by the army.

Secondly, Mba stated further that the army was silent on the source of the alleged distress report or identity of the complainants on the strength of whose report the army claimed had informed their decision to engage in the purported chase and rescue operation.

“Needless to state that in the true spirit of transparency and accountability, the Nigerian Army ought to have arrested the purported distress caller – if any – for obviously and deliberately, furnishing them with false and misleading information. Besides, such arrest should in fact be made public!” he declared.

Thirdly, the police stated that it is not true that the policemen failed to identify themselves as alleged in the press release, adding that “the video on the incident, now viral, wherein the voice of one of the soldiers was heard loudly proclaiming that the policemen were from the Force Headquarters, Abuja speaks volume.

“Besides, the presence of the intelligence response team personnel was well known to the Taraba State Police Command as they officially and properly documented the police team not only at the state command headquarters, but also at the Wukari area command and the Ibi divisional headquarters.”

He added that as a matter of fact, some of the detectives from the Taraba State command’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) were part of the operation.

The police, Mba said, also considers it “insensitive, disrespectful and unpatriotic for the press release by the army to continue to describe policemen on lawful national assignment as suspected kidnappers long after it had become crystal clear to the army that these are law -enforcement officers who unfortunately, were gruesomely murdered in the line of duty by Nigerian soldiers attached to 93 Battalion, Takum.”

The police said that it leaves the army authorities to provide Nigerians with answers on the following questions emanating from their statement.

“Where is the notorious kidnapper, Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume rescued by the soldiers? How and why was Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume released by the soldiers? How could a kidnap suspect properly restrained with handcuffs by the police escape from the hands of his military rescuers?

“If Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume is a victim of kidnap as claimed, and properly rescued by soldiers, why was he not taken to the army base for documentation purposes and debriefing in line with the standard operating procedure in the Nigerian Army?

“Why were the police operatives shot at close range even after they had identified themselves as police officers on legitimate duty as evident in the video now in circulation?” Mba asked.

Meanwhile, the police have released the names of the three policemen killed by soldiers. The deceased are Insp. Mark Edaile, from Edo State, Sgt. Usman Danzumi, from Taraba State and Sgt. Dahiru Musa from Taraba State.

A statement by Mba said the deceased “consists of some of the most disciplined, proficient and hardworking police investigators in the service of the nation.

“Until their untimely death in the hands of soldiers of 93 Battalion Takum, Taraba State, these officers have participated in several high profile and high risk arrests, rescue missions and investigative operations.

“Some of these operations include the arrest of Nigeria’s most notorious kidnap kingpin, Evans and the arrest of 22 Boko Haram terrorists responsible for the 2014 kidnapping of the Chibok School Girls in Borno state.

“They also took part in the arrest of Umar Abdulmalik, the overall Boko Haram commander of North Central Nigeria and several of his group members and the arrest of the kidnappers of two American and two Canadian citizens in Kaduna State.

“The three deceased police operators also took part in the rescue of Magajin Garin Daura in Kano state and arrest of the 13 terrorists responsible for the kidnapping of the Magajin Garin Daura in his home town Daura, Katsina State on May 1, 2019, among many other outstanding feats.

“The Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, commiserates with the families, friends and professional colleagues of the fallen heroes, reassuring them that their death will not be in vain.

“The IGP equally calls for calm among Nigerians as efforts are in top gear to unravel the mystery surrounding this bizarre crime,” the statement added.