The ten civilians that were killed in
Heipang, a suburb of Jos, the Plateau State capital, on Monday evening,
were murdered by security officials, a witness and other residents have
said.
Ten people were killed when gunmen opened fire at a beer joint near the Jos airport.
The
residents have now said that members of the Special Task Force, STF, an
inter agency security outfit in the state, were responsible for the
killings
One resident of the area, Gyang (second name withheld for
security reasons) , who said he escaped the attack by whiskers,
informed PREMIUM TIMES that the killings were carried out by the STF.
Mr.
Gyang said the attackers wore army uniforms and drove a Toyota Hilux
van with military number plates, adding that some of the attackers are
known to the villagers.
“We were just drinking at a local beer
joint which is very close to the road side, then all of a sudden, a
Toyota Hilux pick up van stopped near the joint and the occupants of the
van opened fire on the people drinking beer; we even know some of them
and they came in army vehicle,” he said.
He said the gunmen took
them by surprise, as they suddenly started shooting sporadically at the
people drinking beer at the joint.
“On hearing gunshots some of us
escaped and ran, but we later came back to see 8 dead bodies of people
killed by the gunmen,” said Mr. Gyang.
Some other residents also corroborated his claims.
The
Chairman of Barkinladi Local Government Area, where the community is
located, Emmanuel Loman, also said that the attack may have been carried
out by security personnel.
Call for investigations
Call for investigations
Mr.
Loman, at a press conference on Tuesday, called on the Chief of Defense
Staff to immediately commence investigations on security agents sent to
Plateau State to maintain peace and order.
He said some security
personnel aggravate the crisis in the state when they compromise on
their duty and kill innocent people without a cause.
The council
chairman alleged that one of the suspects who carried out the mayhem was
apprehended by a vigilante group in the area. He said the apprehended
man confessed to the crime, and identified himself as Salisu Gidado, a
Corporal with the Mobil Police Force serving with the Special Task
Force.
He appealed to the Chief of Defense Staff to “order a
thorough investigation of those attacks and any role of the STF
personnel and fifth columnists among them and in particular to establish
the role played by one captain, Salisu Gidado, an STF personnel in the
massacre that took place at Heipang.”
According to him the alleged perpetrator was receiving treatment at the Plateau Specialist Hospital in Jos.
“The said Salisu Gidado is presently receiving medical attention in the hospital,” he said.
When contacted, the spokesperson of the STF, Salisu Mustapha, denied that the attacks were carried out by the STF.
“There
is no way the attackers will wear uniform and even use army vehicle, it
is not true, I have been disputing this all day, it is just not
possible,” he said.
He, however, agreed that the attack occurred
and that eight persons died on the spot, while two more died on Tuesday
while receiving treatment at the hospital.
“The gunmen opened fire
indiscriminately on customers and killed eight on the spot while two
others died later as a result of the gunshots wounds they sustained,”
Mr. Mustapha said.
He said some residents had given the STF useful
information on the attack, adding that the inter agency outfit is
working on those information and intensifying efforts to arrest the
perpetrators of the attack.
The Chief Medical Director of the
Plateau Specialist Hospital, Saminu Gidado, said there are two victims
affected by the attack in his hospital. He said the victims are
responding to treatment.
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