The Nation Newspaper

Tag: killed

  • MEND: we killed 12 JTF men

    MEND: we killed 12 JTF men

    OIL companies operating in the Niger Delta were told yesterday not to rely on the security guarantee given by the Joint Military Task Force (JTF).

    The warning issued by a faction of the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) loyal to Jomo Gbomo came barely 24 hours after an attack by suspected militants on 12 policemen on escort duty to Azuzuama, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area in Bayelsa State.

    Bayelsa State Police Commissioner Mr Kingsley Omire yesterday confirmed the death of the officers, who were declared missing on Friday night.

    Omire, at a news conference in Yenagoa, the state capital, blamed the attack on ex-militants in the Young Shall Grow camp.

    MEND served last week a notice to resume hostilities in the Niger Delta in protest against the sentencing of its chieftain, Mr Henry Okah, in South Africa to a 24-year jail term.

    The JTF dismissed the threat and warned that its men were ready to contain any insurgency.

    In the MEND online statement of April 3, Jomo Gbomo, threatened to launch a plague of sustained attacks, codenamed: “Hurricane Exodus”, with effect from Friday (April 5) at 00:00 hrs.

    Reinforcing the stand, Jomo Gbomo, in another an online statement yesterday, advised oil companies and members of the public to ignore the JTF’s assurance and the “false” comments by Comrade Azizi, who it said claimed to be the new spokesman of the militant group.

    The JTF – codenamed Operation Pulo (oil) Shield, through its spokesman, Lt.-Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, stated that the security outfit was on the alert; with marine and air assets fully mobilised and land and patrol on waterways being intensified.

    MEND said yesterday: “For dismissing Hurricane Exodus as an ‘empty threat’ by the Nigerian security forces, heavily-armed fighters from MEND, at about 17:00 hrs., Saturday, April 6, 2013, intercepted and engaged government security forces in a fierce gunfight, lasting over 40 minutes at Azuzama, Southern Ijaw, Bayelsa State, Nigeria.

    “The clash, which happened in the river, left over 15 security forces dead, as we also lost two of our fighters in the battle.

    “We hope this encounter will serve as a lesson to the JTF to desist from making careless utterances that cannot be backed, as we remain resolute in our resumption of hostilities.

    “All oil companies and the public are advised to ignore the false sense of security being peddled by the JTF, as well as the false comments from a ‘Comrade Azizi’ who claims to be the spokesman for the group. This person is not known to MEND, does not speak for MEND and his utterances and style do not reflect our plans and actions.”

    MEND, in its earlier statement, declared that the attacks would be sustained, until an unreserved apology is offered to it by the Federal Government, which must also show willingness to dialogue with the militant group, as being planned with the Boko Haram sect.

    The JTF, however, said yesterday: “Some policemen heading for Oporoma in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State for the burial of the mother of someone nicknamed Young Shall Grow (an ex-militant leader, with camps in Bayelsa State) were attacked by assailants when their boat developed a problem on the waterway. JTF troops, however, came to the rescue of the survivors.

    “The five sectors of the JTF covering the nine states of the Niger Delta region are on the alert. Our maritime and air assets have also been mobilised and we have intensified our patrols to dominate both land and waterways to checkmate any assailant.

    “We will not permit any lawlessness that will jeopardise the peace in the region. We again call on all peace-loving and progressive Niger Deltans to dissociate themselves, their communities and leadership from this gang of retrogrades, parading themselves as MEND.”

    Reacting to the statement: “We are now determined to conjure this imaginary trumped-up threat into a painful reality”, credited to MEND, the JTF said it had redeployed more personnel to tackle any upheaval, warning the threatening “gang” not to try any attack.

     

  • 18 killed, nine injured in Abuja bus crash

    18 killed, nine injured in Abuja bus crash

    At least 18 passengers died yesterday when two buses collided head-on in Abuja.

    Nine others sustained serious injuries, an official of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), whose name was not given, confirmed to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

    According to the official, the accident occured along the Kwali-Gwagwalada road early yesterday when the driver of a public bus lost control and rammed into on-coming bus.

    All but one of the 18 passengers of the first bus, including the driver, died on the spot.

    In all, 96 people, including 10 children, were involved in the crash, the FRSC said, urging motorists to avoid unnecessary night trips.

    The Kwali-Gwagawalda-Lokoja route linking the North to other parts of the country has become a death trap to travellers.

    Though the road is being expanded to make it safer, construction has dragged on for years.

     

  • 24 killed in Plateau as gunmen, STF clash

    Twenty-four people were killed yesterday in Plateau State in a bloody clash between gunmen suspected to be Fulani mercenaries from Chad and Niger, who came to attack the Berom.

    An eyewitness said the suspected mercenaries, who attacked two villages in Bokkos Local Government, killed residents in the midnight attack on Mangor and Matol communities.

    The source said while the Special Task Force (STF)) on Jos crises code-named ‘Operation safe haven’ repelled the gunmen, inhabitants of the invaded villages regrouped and attacked the Fulani living in their communities.

    The villagers reportedly believed that the mercenaries, who attacked them, were hired by the resident Fulani and they must be made to pay for the killings.

    The eyewitness said during the battle between men of the STF and the mercenaries, six of them were killed and the gunmen killed two mobile police officers attached to the STF.

    The Nation learnt that the gun duel, which lasted several hours, scared residents as they stayed indoors.

    Confirming the incident, STF spokesman Navy Lt. Akpa said two mobile policemen attached to the command were killed, adding that STF operatives also killed six of the gunmen.

    A lawmaker representing Bokkos Constituency in the House of Assembly, Titus Alam, who also confirmed the attack, hailed the STF for repelling the gunmen.

    He urged the residents to be calm as investigations are on to arrest the culprits.

  • Two killed in Rivers communal crisis

    TWO indigenes of K-Dere community in Gokana Local Government of Rivers State have been killed in a renewed clash with neighbouring B-Dere.

    It was gathered yesterday that the two persons were abducted from their farms in Yemuordee by suspected B-Dere fighters, who were allegedly armed with AK-47 rifles and killed.

    The victims are Dumie Mubari (62),a father of four and Esther Zorgoni (30), a mother of three.

    Commissioner of Police Joseph Mbu yesterday met with leaders of K-Dere and B-Dere at the police headquarters.

    Police spokesman Ben Ugwuegbulam confirmed the crisis in K-Dere and said the situation had been brought under control.

    He, however, could not confirm the casualty figure.

    Ugwuegbulam would neither deny nor confirm the commissioner’s meeting with leaders of the two communities.

    Condemning the crisis, the state Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) described it as shameful and unfortunate.

    The party, through its Publicity Secretary, Jerry Needam, said the crisis had exposed the failure and lack of sincerity on the part of the leaders of the communities .

    It called on the Rotimi Amaechi-led administration to set up a probe panel to investigate the causes of the crises and monitor activities in the communities.

     

  • Eight killed in Fulani/ Tarock clash

    Eight people were killed yesterday in a renewed clash between the Fulani and the Tarock in Wase Local Government Area of Plateau State.

    The ethnic groups have been at war since January when the bodies of two people were found in a bush path.

    The dispute over who killed the people has been a source of frequent bloody clashes between the two ethnic groups.

    Wase Local Government is about 250 kilometres from Jos, the Plateau State capital.

    It was rumoured that the ethnic clash might have consumed about 35 victims, but the police command said eight people were killed.

    A source said: “The crisis broke out about 1:45 am yesterday when some gunmen invaded Fili Mavou and set 15 houses ablaze, including the home of Plateau State Commissioner for Water Resources, Idi Waziri.”

    A member representing Kanke Constituency in the House of Assembly, Timothy Golu, alleged that his brother-in-law, Andrew Kunka, had been taken hostage by the Fulani.

    He said the victim might have been killed.

    Confirming the incident, the Special Task Force on Jos Crisis (STF), in a statement signed by its Media Officer Captain Salisu Mustapha, said: “This is to inform the public and Plateau State indigenes that in the early hours of yesterday, about 04:30am, our troops received a distress call by some members of the Mavo community in Wase Local Government about an attack by unknown gunmen, who attempted to overrun the community.

    “The STF personnel deployed in the area moved to the scene of the incident and repelled the attack. Three of the suspected attackers were arrested and are undergoing investigation.”

    He said efforts are on to apprehend the other culprits.

    According to him, the situation has been brought under control and peace has been restored.

    Police Commissioner Chris Olakpe confirmed the attack on the phone, saying about eight persons were killed.

     

  • Seven killed in Cross River, Ebonyi communal clash

    Seven people have been reportedly killed in a fresh outbreak of hostilities between the Amagu people in Ikwo, Ebonyi State and the Adadama people in Abi, Cross River State, on Saturday.

    Several others were injured. Seven houses were razed in Adadama, it was learnt.

    It was gathered that several armed youths, dressed in military uniform from Ebonyi allegedly invaded Adadama community on Saturday at about 2pm, firing sporadically.

    An eyewitness said the seven, who were killed, were Adadama men who had attempted to beat the invaders to retreat.

    He said: “We don’t have any arms here. The people they killed were our men who tried to fight them back.

    “But because they went to face people with sophisticated guns, they ended up dead.

    “About five were killed instantly. Two, who were injured, died on their way to the hospital.

    “Their bodies are in the mortuaries.

    “The invaders came in through the Ngoli Road which links us with Amagu community in Ebonyi State.

    “They were masked and dressed as military men and they had sophisticated guns.

    “They did not come with any vehicle but through the bush tracks which they know very well.

    “They came around two o’clock in the afternoon and were shooting till late in the evening of that Saturday before military men came in and forced them out.

    “They have withdrawn for now, but I believe they are just waiting to cause more havoc.

    “As I speak to you, the Adadama community is deserted.

    “The area is now like a war zone as people have run away to other communities for safety.

    “ We really need something to be done about this situation once and for all.

    “We are peace-loving people. We do not own arms, but we should not be taken for granted because of this.”

    The Cross River State Security Adviser, Rekpene Bassey confirmed the attack.

    “I cannot talk to the press now. But I can confirm there was an attack. Security agencies have moved in to check the situation. That is all I can say for now,” Bassey said.

    In January, at least 11 people were killed in an outbreak of conflict between the communities.

    Armed youths from the Ebonyi community had on January 14 allegedly invaded Adadama where they kidnapped seven farmers and thereafter proceeded to a newly constructed police station and razed it.

  • How Police killed our son, by family

    If there had been no power outage, he might not have been killed that night. It was Saturday, March 9. He had gone to a building opposite his home to take fresh air with a couple.

    Everywhere was in pitch darkness. The late Eze Okoro sat with, Mr and Mrs Chinedu Nwanri outside their 1, Oguntolu Street, Ijaiye Ojokoro, Lagos suburb residence, disussing. The late Okoro lived on House 2. Not far from where they sat is Holaks Hotel at 1 Gbolahan Fagboti Street.

    Some Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) operatives from Adeniji-Adele, Lagos, said to have trailed some suspected robbers to the hotel, were said to be drinking there.

    It was gathered that the policemen arrived the hotel premises around 4pm in a Silver-coloured Toyota Sienna space bus marked at KJA 280 BD.

    Four of them, in plain clothes, reportedly sat at a table inside the hotel, eating and drinking; others took strategic positions around the hotel premises.

    Sources said around 11pm, three men with travelling bags were stopped at the hotel’s entrance by the manager, simply identified as Mr. Adewuyi, who sought to know their mission.

    The men said they wanted food and Adewuyi told them there was none. The policemen were said to have sighted the men, describing them as the armed robbers they were waiting for. They reportedly opened fire on the men, who reportedly took to their heels on sighting them.

    When the late Okoro and Mr and Mrs Nwanri heard the gunshots, they took to their heels, apparenlty to avoid being hit by stray bullets.

    As they were running, the expectant mother tripped, forcing the husband to rush to her aid. The police caught up with the couple, pulled the man up and threatened to shoot him. His wife cried out, saying: “Please leave him; he is not an armed robber. He is my husband, I am pregnant.”

    When the policemen saw that she is truly pregnant, they left her husband and advanced towards Okoro who had taken refuge under a shrub.

    The police allegedly picked Okoro from under the shrub. As he was being pulled out, he cried out, saying he was not a robber. He reportedly told the police that he resided at 2, Oguntolu Street, adding that they could take him there for identification. Instead, the FSARS men reportedly opened fire on him, killing him instantly. His body was dragged into their Toyota Sienna vehicle.

    One of the suspected robbers, said to be among the trio that came in to ask for food, was also arrested and taken away by the FSARS operatives.

    The late Okoro’s widow, Ugo and her mother-in-law, Madam Okoro, were said to have started a search for their son in the morning when he did not come back home in the night of March 9.

    Their search took them to the hotel where they were told what happened the previous night. The bereaved family rushed to FSARS to confirm if it was true, but they were reportedly denied access by some policemen who claimed nothing like that happened.

    When they persisted, they were taken to the office of a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) who confirmed the incident, but said their son was “killed in error.”

    The widow and her aged mother-in-law are calling on the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Mohammed Abubakar, to investigate the incident.

    They wonder why the police did not listen to their late son and bring him home to confirm if he truly lived there before killing him.

    “My husband is not an armed robber; he has never been involved in any criminal act. Why would they kill him just like that and bring suffering to my family? The IG should please look into this matter because all we want is justice. The killers of my husband must be brought to book”, Mrs Ugo Okoro told The Nation yesterday as she fought back tears.

    Mrs Okoro, who said she had been left alone to take care of their seven-year-old son, said: “My husband’s last meal before he was killed was Indomie noodles, which I prepared for him. It was after he had finished eating that he went outside to join his friend and his wife. I would have been there with them, but I was busy taking care of some things inside the house.

    “When I heard the gunshots, I was afraid and I called my husband on his mobile telephone, but I discovered it was switched off. I summoned courage and ran out, only to discover that they were no longer where they sat. I asked some people and they said some policemen were shooting and that they saw them drag the lifeless body of a man into their van. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me to all the police stations in our area, but they denied knowledge of any such incident.”

    Six months ago, policemen from Anthony Police Station allegedly killed the late Ugochukwu Ozuah in a circumstance that is yet to be unravelled. Ozuah was killed five days after his wedding ceremony and his bride and family are yet to recover from the shock.

    When contacted yesterday, FSARS’ spokesman, Lekan Ogundare, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said: “I cannot deny it now because I am not aware of any such incident. But let me get to the office tomorrow (today), I will find out.”

     

  • Police killed our son, family alleges

    WHO killed seyi Fasere, the part-time 400-level Business Administration student of Ekiti State University (EKSU)? He was killed last Thursday on his way to school. The police, the bereaved family alleged yesterday, killed him.

    In tears, his parents, Mr and Mrs Joseph Fasere told reporters in their Ilupeju-Ekiti home that they don’t believe the police story linking their son to a bank robbery.

    They said the late Fasere was returning to school in Ado-Ekiti, capital of the state in the evening that fateful Thursday, when he was killed.

    According to them, they got wind of a robbery late that Thursday through a neighbour, Mrs. Victoria Bobola Adewuyi, who said she boarded the same bus from Ilupeju with the deceased before the vehicle ran into a gang of robbers somewhere close to Oye.

    Since it was late, Mrs Fasere said, they could not establish contact with the deceased until the next day when they traced him to the police station in Oye where, they found his dead body.

    The mother said: “When we got to the station, we saw and identified the corpse with his hands tied behind him. I told them (the police) that the boy was my son. I was surprised when they (the police) told me that he (Fasere) was among the gang of robbers who attacked a bank in Oye.

    “We opposed their claim and told them that my son just left home where he came to collect his school fees as his second semester examination would be starting next week. He left home with about N100,000.”

    At that point, she said: “They (police) then descended on me and his father with blows and all manners off objects, saying that we were the ones who sent the boy to be throwing grenades at them.”

    “Thereafter, we were thrown behind the counter where we were kept until about 6pm when they released us to go home and ordered to come back following day.”

    Mrs. Fasere said a policeman popularly called, ‘Akobi-Esu’ (devil’s first child), had told them that he killed Seyi with “a single shot” after being established as a member of the robbery gang.

    She said: “My son was killed at the police station on Friday morning and taken to the bush to make people believe that he was a robber.

    “It is sad for the police to have caught Seyi where he was hiding, tied his hands and detained him from Thursday till Friday before shooting him just to create the impression that they had caught a robber. They even spread the news in town that he was a member of a robbery gang. But the second day, a heavy rain fell and one of the robbers, who sustained injury during the raid was washed out of the culvert where he was hiding, almost dying.

    “When interrogated by the police in the presence of the people, the man confessed to being a member of the gang and that Seyi was not among them.

    Mrs Adewuyi, 72, said when the robbers shot at the bus, all the passengers alighted and ran into the bush.

    “When I returned to Ilupeju later in the day, I asked if Seyi had also come back. They said he had not,” the septuagenarian said.

    The Police Public Relations Officer of the state, Mr Victor Olu-Babayemi said Seyi’s body was discovered in the bush the following day, when his men combed the robbery scene.

    He said: “One of the robbers who was shot and arrested said he could not identify Seyi because he was not among the team that attacked the station. But he confessed to being part of the team who attacked the bank.”

    “He also disclosed that their gang leader recruited them separately. So, we do not know if Seyi was one of the robbers or he was caught in the crossfire. But we are still investigating”, Olu-Babayemi said.

    The robbers, who attacked second-generation bank made away with an undisclosed sum of money.

    They were said to have own the bank’s entrance with a dynamite. It was, however, not confirmed if there were casualties in the attack.

  • Two policemen killed in Taraba

    Two policemen killed in Taraba

    Two soldiers and a yet to be specified number of civilians were yesterday killed in Maiduguri after four explosions in the beleaguered Borno State capital.

    The explosions occurred at Customs and Bolori – Baga road where a series of blasts occurred last week.

    Spokesperson of the Joint Task Force, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa, insisted that the explosions, targetted at a patrol vehicle, killed a civilian and injured three others including a soldier. He denied that soldiers were killed.

    Governors of the parties in the All Progressives Congress (APC) were meeting at the Borno State Government House when explosions occurred.

    In Taraba State, also in the northeast geo-political zone, gunmen killed two policemen in a failed attempt to abduct some expatriate workers.

    Taraba police confirmed that the gunmen attacked a company in a raid on Tella village at a site owned by Triacta Engineering firm. Three Lebanese engineers were working on a bridge project.

    But an official from Triacta, who requested anonymity, told AFP that “based on what has been happening, we have every reason to believe that our expatriates were the target”.

    “It was a clear case of a failed kidnap,” he added.

    “Last night, there were shootings around the house where the expatriate construction workers are living,” said resident Yonana Dauda. “Two policemen guarding the house were shot dead.”

    The company official and other residents confirmed those details, adding that the Lebanese engineers ran when the gunfire broke out and escaped unhurt.

    Police spokesman Amos Olaoye said: “There was an incident in Tella last night… details are sketchy.”

    Police Commissioner, Jibrin Olawole confirmed that the two policemen guarding the residence of PW Road Construction were killed Wednesday night.

    Olawole, who briefed the Acting Governor of the state in the Jalingo Government House on the security situation, said the gunmen who came in a Honda Car took away the rifles of the policemen after the incident.

    He said the command had beefed up security around all sites where expatriates were executing various construction jobs across the state.

     

  • Four Nasarawa varsity students killed

    Four students of the Nasarawa State University died yesterday during a protest over water scarcity in the institution.

    Two of the victims were identified as, Aminu O. Usman, 400-Level Geography and Baba Emmanuel, 300-Level Physics

    The victims were among the students who protested against the scarcity of water and power outage in the school.

    During the protest, some soldiers allegedly invaded the school and fired shots, an eyewitness said.

    Nasarawa State Police Command spokesman Michael Ada confirmed the killing of the students, but denied that they were shot by the police.

    He said the commissioner of police was on the scene.

    Five students were reportedly shot by a combined team of soldiers and policemen, who moved in to open the barricade by the students of the Nasarawa State University (NSUK), Keffi, who protested yesterday against a water crisis, which had lasted for over one week.

    The Deputy Governor’s spokesman, Joseph Danjuma, said they were about to “issue a statement”, on the matter.

    The university management has closed down the school, according to Jamil Zakari, spokesman for the university.

    He said he heard of the shooting of the students, adding: “I cannot officially confirm this now.”

    Ada said the Commissioner of Police, Abayomi Akeremale, had left Lafia to Keffi.