A soldier, who was arrested for absconding from his duty post to join fighters of the Islamist group, Boko Haram, to raid a town, has committed suicide while he was being transported.
The soldier, Jibrin Biu, a Lance Corporal, attached to the Nigerian Army 159 Battalion in Geidam, under the Nigerian Army 27 Task Force Brigade in Buni Gari, Yobe State, reportedly disappeared for two days before he was tracked and arrested.
A source in the army revealed that the soldier was identified among fighters of the Islamist group last Sunday, as they attacked Geidam, a town in Yobe State.
His commanding officer subsequently tracked his phone and he was pinpointed at a point in Gashua, in the state.
According to sources, including the soldier’s colleagues, a signal was sent to the army base in Gashua and dragnets were spread out for him.
He was arrested at a checkpoint in a commercial bus travelling to Yobe on Tuesday morning.
Following his arrest, he reportedly snatched a gun from a soldier who was transporting him to custody and shot himself dead.
The deceased soldier was said to be in the Intelligence Corps of the army before becoming a weapons instructor. He was believed to be paid by the terror group to teach their members how to use firearms.
The army spokesperson, Onyema Nwachukwu, did not respond to WhatsApp calls and text messages sent to his phone for comments on the incident.
Last September, a similar incident occurred in Yobe when a soldier, Victor Ojeamiran, attached to the Nigerian Army 27 Task Force Brigade in Buni Gari, Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State, committed suicide he was allegedly false accused of stealing.
The soldier was reportedly punished by his superior in public, while residents of the area shot videos of the punishment and later posted them on some social media platforms.
Mr Ojeamiran shot himself after he personally submitted a note to his platoon sergeant for delivery to his superior officer in the Task Force. In his suicide note, he insisted he was innocent of the allegation.
Credit: premiumtimesng.com
