Army Begins Investigation On Soldier Who Shot Colleagues, Self In Sokoto

By Iyojo Ameh

The Nigerian Army has instituted investigations into the unfortunate incident of a soldier, who killed his colleagues and himself at Forward Operations Base (FOB) Rabbah, Sokoto State.

In a statement, the Director Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu said that the sad and rare incident occured in the evening of Sunday 5 March 2023 at the FOB, where troops were deployed for Internal Security Operations.

He explained that the circumstances leading to the incident could not be immediately ascertained, as the soldier who killed his colleagues also shot himself immediately, terminating his own life.

According to him, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 8 Division Nigerian Army, who also doubles as the Commander Joint Task Force Northwest Operation Hadarin Daji Major General Godwin Mutkut and other senior officers have visited the location, where he commiserated with troops for loosing their colleagues in such an unfortunate situation.

He urged them to be their brother’s keepers and report any anomaly observed amongst their colleagues in order to forestall such incidents.

He also encouraged them to remain calm and committed in the discharge of their duties.

He said the authorities of the Nigerian Army are deeply concerned about this unusual and ugly development and have therefore instituted a Board of Inquiry (BOI) to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident.

He added that it is envisaged that the findings of the BOI will help forestall such ugly and bizarre occurrence in the future.