Taraba police killings: How Army captain engaged welder to remove kingpin suspect cuffs

Fresh facts revealed, yesterday, that the Army captain fingered in the killing of three police officers attached to Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team, IRT, and the subsequent release of suspected kidnap kingpin, Alhaji Hamisu Wadume, in Ibi, Taraba State, threatened to deal with police officers attached to Ibi police station for not cooperating with him.

It was also gathered that only two police officers, including one Assistant Superinterdent of Police, ASP, Aondonna Iorbee, the DCO, Ibi Police Station, who is also a Tiv from Benue State and the Crime Officer, Ibi Police Station, Inspector Aliyu, are in police custody at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.

They are said to have made useful statements to investigators. Sources further told newsmen that the officers are being investigated over what happened after the killing of the police officers and not before.

Reliable sources told newsmen that immediately the suspected kidnap kingpin was rescued from the policemen, who arrested him, the Army captain took him to his base from where he called his friend who is the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, in-charge of Ibi Police station.

According to sources, immediately the police officer, who was on leave arrived, the Army captain told him to contact the police station so that keys to the hand and leg cuffs used in arresting the kidnap kingpin could be produced to unchain him.

Unfortunately, sources said, efforts by the DCO to contact his men failed and the captain directed him to engage a welder to remove the cuffs, which they succeeded after which he took the suspect to his house.

It was gathered that after that, the Army captain called the station officer at Ibi police station, demanding that all evidence relating to the policemen from IRT be erased in the station.

Newsmen learnt that the Inspector initially hesitated in carrying out the captain’s directives until he threatened to deal with him.

Consequently, he reluctantly tampered with the records by tearing the page where the IRT team officially recorded their presence on official duty in Ibi.

However, sources said they were oblivious of the fact that records were still intact in other police diaries.

Newsmen also learned that the Army captain, in his resolve to obliterate every evidence that would expose the raw deal, nearly killed the badly wounded police officers after they were rescued and taken to Ibi police station but for the intervention of other senior police officers and soldiers, who reminded him that their survival was recorded on video by villagers that thronged the scene of the shooting.