The Nigerian Army has described the killing of a UNIJOS student Rinji Bala as a mistake, saying he was mistaken for a suspect who is on the run.
Rinji Bala, a 300-level student of History and International Studies of the University of Jos History and International Studies was said to be killed by one of the soldiers attached to the special task force (STF), Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), for violating the lockdown order.
Speaking about his death, UNIJOS Students’ Union Secretary-General stated that Rinji Bala was not arrested as claimed by the soldiers but was simply shot. “Yes, he’s our student. He is a student of the faculty of arts. He was shot by a military personnel for violating the lockdown order imposed by the state government. So far, that is the information available to us. There was nothing like arrest in this case. He was simply shot dead by a soldier this morning.
It is rather unfortunate, this is the second time we are experiencing this. This is the second time a military personnel would kill our student, and the truth is, we are conversant with the executive order of the state government guiding lockdown in the state. There is no clause in the law that if anyone violates lockdown, he should be killed. The other time it happened, that was how the issue died down. But to be frank, this one is not going to die down like the other. We are calling on the government to do the needful as fast as they can“, he said.
Reacting, the OPSH spokesperson Ibrahim Shittu told NAN that the 20-year-old who was better known by friends as Bobo was shot by a sentry of the OPSH who mistook him for an escaping suspect on Tuesday. He noted that the personnel of the task force responded to a distress call on activities of cultists and armed robbers around the area, leading to the arrest of seven suspects, and Rinji Bala was among those arrested and taken to the OPSH office along Zaria Road, Jos.
He added that they were released after checks showed they were not connected to the robbery activities but on their way out, the soldier, who mistook them for escaping suspects had opened fire on them, killing Bala in the process. Read also:Â US Politicians Demand Justice For Ahmaud Arbery Who Was Killed While Jogging In Georgia
“Yesterday, at about 10 p.m., we received information of the activities of suspected armed robbers and cultists operating around No. 18th Street axis, opposite Hwolshe community. The report revealed that the criminals took advantage of the lockdown and curfew to perpetrate crimes. Consequently, our Sector 1 patrol troops of OPSH swiftly responded and arrested 7 suspects, which were immediately moved to the Headquarters of the Sector 1 for preliminary investigation. Thereafter, five out of the seven suspects were cleared and asked to leave the premises. Unfortunately as they were leaving, one of the personnel on sentry duty mistook them for escaping suspects. Thus opened fire on them, which led to the death of Rinji Bala“, he said.
The OPSH spokesperson, Ibrahim Shittu explained that some delegates were sent to visite the family of the deceased and commiserated with them while promising to ensure the deceased get justice. He added that thorough investigation had commenced to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident, and the personnel who shot has been arrested and detained already.
