Skip to main content

Rivers Rerun Election: Army recovers weapons, uniforms of slain policemen

Soldiers on patrol

The Nigerian Army says it has recovered one AK47 assault rifle and uniforms belonging to DSP Mohammed Alkali and his police orderly allegedly beheaded by cultists.

The policemen were killed by suspected cultists at Omoku, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers during the Dec. 10 re-run legislative elections.

Maj.-Gen. Kasimu Abdulkarim, the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 6 Division, Port Harcourt, disclosed this to newsmen in Port Harcourt on Sunday.

Abdulkarim said that troops from the Division recovered the items during a raid on four militant camps and cultist’s hideouts in Ujju community near Omoku.

According to him, troops also recovered assorted types of arms and ammunitions stashed away by bandits in the area.

“Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area has over time witnessed criminal acts ranging from attacks on critical national infrastructure and brutal murder which affected economic activities of oil companies and citizens.

“The barbaric nature and manner of criminalities led the 6 Division to conduct a raid on December 31 on four suspected criminal camps located across the River, in Ujju community.

“In the raid, 6 Division troops in conjunction with Operation Delta Safe Special Boats Service and air component, engaged the suspected criminals in exchange of gunfire.

“Troops later arrested some suspects and recovered several weapons, ammunitions and uniforms, including uniforms and rifle belonging DSP Mohammed Alkali and his orderly, Sgt. Urukwu Nwachukwu.

“Our forces also recovered one AK47 rifle, two G3 rifles, five Double Barrel guns, two pistols, 31 empty AK47 magazines, 242 rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammunition.

“Others are, 322 rounds of other ammunition calibres, bulletproof jackets, seven other police uniforms, 31 handsets, Automated Teller Machine Cards (ATM) and a First Aid box,” he said.

Abdulkarim said the clean-up operation was in continuation of efforts by the Division to recover weapons from cultists and militants who refused to embrace Amnesty offered by Rivers’ government.

He said that in spite of the just concluded amnesty programme offered by government, armed groups had continued to terrorise residents in Omoku town.

The GOC said that 15 persons including a soldier, four Civil Defence Corps personnel; two policemen and eight civilians were brutally murdered while several others kidnapped in the area in December alone.

“This trend of violence cannot be left unchecked as the Division will sustain “operation cleanup” to enable oil companies and the people to go about their businesses in peaceful environment,” he said.

Abdulkarim urged the public to provide security agencies with vital information that would lead to the arrest of cultists and militants and assured that their identities would be kept in confidence.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Houthis Claim Attack on Central Israel in Response to Gaza ‘Massacres’

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has taken a concerning regional turn as the Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for an attack on central Israel. The group announced this as part of their escalating response to what they describe as "massacres" in Gaza amid the Israeli military’s operations in the strip. Details of the Attack The Houthis, a Shiite militant group with ties to Iran, declared that they launched missile and drone strikes targeting Israel. While the exact impact of these attacks remains unclear, reports suggest that Israel’s defense systems intercepted several threats over its airspace. This marks a significant escalation as the Houthis widen their involvement in the conflict beyond their typical operations within Yemen and neighboring Saudi Arabia. The Houthis’ Justification In their statement, the Houthis framed the attack as retaliation for Israel’s military actions in Gaza, which they characterized as indiscriminate bombings resultin...

Fire: UniJos Senate convenes emergency meeting on Monday

Fire at the University of Jos Library University of Jos is to convene an emergency senate meeting on Monday to review the level of damage done to the institution by the Saturday night inferno. The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sebastian Maimako, disclosed this on Sunday after inspecting areas affected by the incident. The fire, which lasted for more than six hours, destroyed the Library Complex that equally houses the faculties of management and social sciences. The fire also destroyed examination scripts, books and very crucial materials. Consequently, the vice-chancellor said “the Senate will meet tomorrow (Monday) to take a decision about the unmarked examination scripts that were burnt.” On the cause of the inferno, Maimako said investigation had commenced, adding that “nothing has been confirmed yet. We are still investigating.” The vice chancellor said the school was already working with federal authorities toward establishing a main fire station since the mini fire station in t...

NDLEA arrests 252 suspects, seizes 3,073 kg Indian hemp

NDLEA operatives The NDLEA in Niger on Monday said that it had arrested 252 suspects and seized 3,073.9 kilogramme of Indian hemp(cannabis sativa) in the state. The NDLEA Commander in the state, Mr Joseph Iweajunwa, who disclosed this in Minna, said that the operations were carried out between January and September. “Our operations in Niger State from January to September 2016 led to the arrest of 252 suspects and seizure of 3,073.997 kilogramme of cannabis sativa,’’ he said. Iweajunwa said that within the period, the agency also seized 1, 530 litres of liquid drugs, especially cough syrup with codeine. He said the NDLEA also counselled and rehabilitated 90 drug addicts in the state within the period under review. The agency, he added, secured convictions of only nine of the suspects because the judge at the Federal High Court, Minna, went on leave. “ Now that the judge has resumed more suspects will be tried,’’ he said. He advised motorists, especially commercial vehicle dri...