Taraba shooting: Army lied; killed victims on purpose – Police

…Challenge soldiers to produce rescued billionaire
kidnapper

The last may not have been heard about the killings of three
police officers and a civilian by soldiers in Taraba State as the
police have challenged the army authorities to produce Alhaji
Hamisu Bala Wadume, it allegedly rescued from his abductors.

The Police Force Headquarters has also challenged the Nigerian
Army to tell Nigerians how a kidnapped suspect in handcuffs escaped
from soldiers who were supposed to have rescued him from his
abductors.

Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, who made this known
in Abuja, also debunked claims by the army that the policemen
failed to identify themselves and that the police division at Ibi,
was not informed about the presence of the IRT personnel in the
state.

Mba, said that contrary to the claims by the army to cover up
its murderous act, the presence of the IRT personnel was well known
to the Taraba police command as the operatives officially and
properly documented not only at the state command headquarters but
also at the Wukari Area Command and the Ibi Divisional
Headquarters.

The police spokesman said “The attention of the Nigeria Police
Force has been drawn to the press release by the Nigerian Army
dated 07 August, 2019, seeking to justify the unprovoked and
unwarranted murder of three police officers and one civilian, and
serious injury to other operatives, who were on a legitimate
criminal investigation activities to Taraba State, to arrest one
Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume, indicted in a series of high-profile
kidnap incidents in the state. In the best tradition of Esprit de
Corps, inter-agency harmony and national interest, the Nigeria
Police Force would naturally have kept quiet, but it has become
imperative to set the record straight by addressing the obvious
distortion of facts inherent in the press release by the Nigerian
Army.

“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?

“Secondly, the press release was silent on the source of the
alleged distress report or identity of the complainant, 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!

“Thirdly, it is not true that the policemen failed to identify
themselves as alleged in the press release. 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 IRT
personnel was well known to the Taraba Police Command as the
operatives officially and properly documented not only at the State
Command Headquarters but also at the Wukari Area Command and the
Ibi Divisional Headquarters. 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 force 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
they were law-enforcement officers who unfortunately were
gruesomely murdered in the line of duty by Nigerian soldiers
attached to 93 Battalion, Takum.

“In the final analysis, we leave the Nigerian Army authorities
to provide Nigerians with answers on the following questions
emanating from their press release: “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.”

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