The FCT Police Command on Tuesday, March 12, apprehended an operative of the Nigeria Correctional Service over alleged involvement in the shooting of a fleeing convict.The incident is reported to have triggered the violence that led to the burning down of the popular Wuse Market.
Over ₦500 million worth of properties were destroyed in the unfortunate inferno that razed down the market on Tuesday in Abuja.
The arrested officer, Usman Ishaya Magaji, allegedly shot the victim, Ibrahim Yahaya, which led to a riot that consumed over 50 shops and 20 cars.The suspect is said to be presently in police custody as investigation is ongoing.
SP Josephine Adeh, Police Public Relations Officer, FCT Police Command, in a statement said ,”following the report of a civil unrest at Wuse Market on Tuesday March 12, 2024, at about 3:30 PM, the Commissioner of Police FCT Command, CP Benneth Igweh, personally led a team of Police operatives to the scene, assessed and swiftly restored order.”
According to Adeh, preliminary investigation revealed that “one Ibrahim Yahaya ‘27 years’ was apprehended by operatives of the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) Task Force and was taken before a mobile court which sits every Tuesday in Wuse Market.”
She added that Yahaya was being taken alongside others to the prison, when he reportedly jumped from the vehicle and took to his heels in an attempt to escape.
“Two armed Corrections personnel who were in the vehicle went after him and in the process, shot him. The said Ibrahim Yahaya was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors on ground confirmed him dead.”
