Barely twenty four hours after grieving families, relations and friends witnessed the heroic but painful burial of the 17 slain soldiers in Okuama, the Defence Headquarters Thursday declared eight persons wanted over their alleged roles in the criminality which occurred in Delta state.
Among those declared wanted by the military high command is a professor of Solid State Physics in the Department of Physics, Delta State University, Abraka, Ekpekpo Arthur.
The varsity teacher is a member of the Nigeria Institute of Physics, Nigeria Association of Mathematical Physics, as well as Science Association of Nigeria.
Also on the wanted list are Andaowei Dennis Bakriri, Akevwru Daniel Omotegbo (a.k.a Amagben), Akata Malawa David, Sinclear Oliki, Clement Ikolo Ogenerukeywe, Reuben Baru and Igoli Ebi.
Blueprint reports that 17 soldiers who were killed in Okuama community were buried Wednesday at the National Military Cemetery Abuja with full national honours.
Announcing the names on the wanted list in Abuja, Director Defence Media Operations, Major-General Edward Buba, said: “We must never allow the incident that occurred in Delta state that led to the killing of 17 soldiers that were buried on 27 March, 2024 to ever happen again. The armed forces are a force for stability that employs both kinetic and non kinetic measures to achieve the desired end state.
“Prior to the ugly incident, the military had constructed several civic projects in Delta State as a sign of goodwill. For instance, the construction of Multipurpose Hall and Borehole Projects in Patani LGA and Medical Outreach at Aladja Community in Udu LGA all in Delta state, among several others. Needless to mention, the elders and community leaders have an obligation to expose these wanted persons.
“Nevertheless, troops would continue with their efforts until the culprits are found, arrested, tried, and brought to justice by Nigerian law. The banner of eight wanted persons involved with the killing including a woman is hereby released. Accordingly, it is necessary to state that citizens are our first line of intelligence and must rise to the occasion in honour of their nation.”
…Boko Haram
In a related development, General Buba also confirmed the release of 313 Boko Haram suspects released by the military to the Borno state government following a court order.
He disclosed that they were released for lack of concrete evidence linking them to the terror sect.
He said: “During the week, as follow up to a court order of the Federal High Court in Maiduguri. A total of 313 suspects in detention for terrorism-related offenses were to be released to the Borno State government. The court ordered the release for want of evidence after the conclusion of investigation and other ancillary matters.
“The cases were prosecuted by the Department of Prosecution, Federal Ministry of Justice. Accordingly, they would be handed over to the Borno state government for further action.”
General Buba, however, said the military would improve on its evidence gathering mechanism in order to nail terrorism suspects when taken to court in future.
“These operations are complex. Going forward, we would improve our battlefield evidence in order to gather concrete evidence,” he said.
…Kuriga, Sokoto abduction
Speaking on the recent rescue of 137 school children taken hostage in Sokoto and Kaduna states by the military, Buba said the kidnapped children contributed significantly to aid the military rescue them.
He said their rescue showed the dynamic nature of security challenges confronting the nation and the resolve of the military to tackle it.
“The rescue of the hostages is indicative of a better understanding of the dynamics of what we are dealing with, and to address the issue in a much safer manner.
“The rescue operations were based on collaboration between the military working with local authorities and government agencies across the country, in a coordinated approach.
“The success demonstrates the unwavering commitment of the armed forces to secure and protect the citizens against harm and acts of terror.
“The pressure of military operations created a significant level of distress both for the terrorists and the children. Given the situation, the troop’s line of interest was the children. The level of distress created by the children was sufficient enough for troops to exploit in their rescue. “
… Successes in theatres of operation
Speaking on the successes recorded by the military in the different theatres of operations in the last one week, the defence spokesperson said, troops neutralised 212 terrorists and arrested 252 others under the period.
He said troops also arrested 29 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 244 kidnapped hostages across different theatres of operations.
According to him, in the South-south geo-political zone, troops denied the oil thieves crude estimated to be worth the sum of One Billion Fifty Million Seven and Fifteen Thousand Two Hundred and Sixty Naira (N1, 050,715,260.00) only.
Furthermore, he disclosed that troops recovered 223 assorted weapons and 2,756 assorted ammunition.
“The breakdown as follows: 3 M56 rifles, 115 AK47 rifles, 3 PKT gun, 24 locally fabricated gun, 36 dane guns, 7 locally fabricated pistols, one fabricated revolver pistol, 3 locally made single barrel guns, 2 hand grenades and one locally made explosive.
“Others are 1,716 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 494 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 60 rounds of 7.62 x 25mm ammo, 290 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammo, 81 rounds of 9mm ammo, 2 live cartridges, 16 magazines, 3 M56 rifles magazines, one HH radio, 5 vehicles, 14 motorcycles, 15 mobile phones and the sum of N857,960.00 amongst other items,” he said.
