Independent Body to Investigate Police/NSCDC Clash

Chiemelie Ezeobi

The fear of a biased investigation into Wednesday's clash between police operatives attached to Ikorodu Division of the Lagos State Police Command and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, has made the federal government set up an independent body.

Although the independent body was not confirmed by both opposing services as at press time, it was gathered that the State Security Service (SSS), have been given directives to carry out investigations into the actual cause of the clash.

The decision to call in the SSS was probably influenced by the counter accusation and bulk passing of blame between the police and the civil defence after the clash that claimed two lives; Gabriel Adaji and Innocent Akegbe and left several others with varying degrees of injuries.

While the NSCDC maintained that their men were killed by the police for allegedly failing to release some pipeline vandals in their custody, the police on the other hand said they were attacked by the civil defence in the course of their duty,

However, police sources said that Inspector Sunday Gabriel, had during interrogation said that he was tied and beaten up even after he had identified himself as a member of the investigative team attached to the Inspector General of Police Task Force on Anti-Pipeline Vandalism.

But the civil defence official who was also arrested by the police command, Gbedogun Abideen Olanrewaju, maintained that they were transporting some pipeline vandals to their headquarters when the police intercepted them.

According to him, they were intercepted by a Toyota Camry Saloon Car with some persons in mufti and two others in uniform as passengers.

He disclosed that Inspector Gabriel had confronted their boss and an argument ensued, leading to the shoot out that claimed two lives and left several others injured.

 

Meanwhile, the NSCDC Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Command, Kehinde Dada, said investigation into the matter has commenced in Abuja, adding that she would not be able to make official statement on the current state of investigation.