Soldier kills robbery suspect during attempted escape from Minna barracks
By: Zagazola Makama
A suspected armed robber was shot and killed by a soldier during a failed attempt to flee with a stolen motorcycle from the Nigerian Army’s 31 Artillery Brigade Tradoc Cantonment in Minna, Niger State.
Zagazola Makama gathered that the incident occurred on June 23 at about 4:40 a.m. when an officer of the Nigerian Army Corps Military Police, Idris Isah, who was on routine patrol within the cantonment, encountered two unidentified men attempting to push a motorcycle through a rear section of the barracks fence.
According to a preliminary report, when the officer challenged them, one of the suspects attempted to attack him with a machete, prompting the soldier to open fire in self-defence. The bullet struck one of the suspects in the left side of his body.
The injured suspect was immediately taken to the Military Hospital, where he was later confirmed dead. His identity is yet to be ascertained.
Following the incident, detectives led by the Divisional Crime Officer, ASP Dakum Koptikhin, visited the scene. Photographs were taken and relevant exhibits were recovered. The body of the deceased has since been deposited at the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) Specialist Hospital mortuary.
