‘Dozens Were Killed’ — Policeman’s Family Says Police Lied About Zamfara Attack Casualty Toll

Days after the Nigeria Police Force announced that its officers
were attacked by Fulani militia in Zamfara State, with one officer
killed, the family of a missing officer have come out to counter
the claim.

A family member, who spoke to SaharaReporters, maintained that
dozens of police officers were killed in the ambush.

DCP Jimoh Moshood, Force Public Relations Officer, had said the
Police team was attacked at Mahanga forest in Zamfara. He disclosed
that the Police killed 104 bandits, while an officer was killed and
12 persons were injured.

“The Police Joint Operation Team at about 1600Hrs, 29th
November, 2018, repelled attacks from armed bandits at Mahanga
Forest in Birnin Mogaji LGA of Zamfara State, and in the process
killed one hundred and four (104) bandits, destroyed over fifty
(50) bandits’ hideouts in three (3) camps, recovered over five
hundred (500) cattle and seventy-nine (79) sheep from the bandits.
Unfortunately, we lost a policeman and twelve (12) policemen were
wounded during the attacks. The Police team has restored normalcy
and peace in the affected areas,” DCP Moshood had said.

However, a family member of one of the officers deployed with
the team, Sergeant Sunday Itodo, countered the claim, insisting
that Itodo’s whereabouts was unknown and the Police are yet to
state whether he is dead or alive.

Yemi Itodo, the Sergeant’s brother, who spoke with our
correspondent, also revealed that the Police lost more than 12
officers in the ambush.

He said the family got information that Sergeant Itodo was shot
during the attack, as well as a colleague who tried to rescue
him.

“The family got information on Sunday morning by a source at the
operation that our brother, Sergeant Itodo, was shot during the
attack and a colleague who attempted to rescue him by taking him to
a nearby bush path, was also shot,” he said.

He, however, mentioned that they have been unable to get in
touch with Sergeant Itodo, as his phone was switched off. It was
also gathered that the bodies of the officers shot by the armed
bandits were yet to be recovered by the Police.

“We learnt that dozens of policemen were killed in the ambush.
My brother and all other officers shot were still under hostage in
the forest, as efforts by both the Nigeria Police and Army to
recover bodies became fruitless,” he added.

The family questioned the Force on why the casualty figure was
pegged at just one, and they urged the Inspector General of Police
to “please intensify efforts to rescue our brother and hopefully
alive too”.

“We don’t want to believe he is dead. He can’t just abandon his
young wife and four kids at this moment. My brother will not die. I
only want the IGP to act fast,” Itodo said in tears.

Sergeant Itodo, a member of Mopol 15 Kwara, according to the
family, has been in the Special Mobile Force of the Federal
Government for almost eight years and was part of the foreign
peacekeeping mission in Somalia in 2013 and returned with an award
for gallantry.

He has also been part of the Special Forces fighting insurgency
for many years in Borno, Kaduna, Sokoto, with his latest posting in
Jos before he was deployed to Zamfara three weeks ago.

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