The Army Captain who ordered the killing of three officers of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Intelligence Response Team (IRT) in Taraba state and thereafter set a kidnap kingpin, Alh Hamisu Wadume free has been arrested.

It was gathered that the kidnap kingpin/suspect is a philanthropist and had bought a car for the Captain, who was in charge of the last army check point where the IRT operatives were killed.

Security sources disclosed that the Captain gave command to his men to shoot the bus carrying the Police officers with an instruction that “no Policeman must escape but the suspect (Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume) should be freed’.

The source said: “Our colleagues (Police Operatives) also exchanged pleasantries with the army at the checkpoint before they pursued then on the Captain’s instruction and fired fired them.”

Meanwhile, “The video in circulation depicting the gruesome killing of the Police operatives of the IGP IRT as well as a civilian in Taraba state by soldiers at Ibi town has further revealed that the policemen begged the soldiers not to kill them

The video begins with one of the slain officers in a red attire and alone beside their bus apparently turned over through an accident that must have occurred from the hot chase that ensued after the team was ambushed by the soldiers.

Seconds later, he moves to the other side as three bloodied people lay dead while one, in a striped white and green Polo shirt, is on the floor and writhing in agony.

A man in yellow T shirt hands the ignition key of the white Toyota bus with number plate: Lagos MUS 564 EU, to a man not visible in the video.

“Here is the key of the vehicle,” he said in Hausa language.

The body of the vehicle, like the murdered policemen, was riddled with bullets as the mob continues cursing the fallen officers.

“We will deal with you, you unlucky ones. They showed us ID cards that they were from the IG (Inspector General of Police). Till all of you die,” another said, also in Hausa.

As this was going on, a booming voice from the crowd of mostly soldiers, many of them not in uniforms, commended the mob and said: “Well done guys, you did well.

This has learnt further credence to reports that the killings were premeditated.

Another unidentified voice in the video said: “Let’s set them ablaze with the vehicle,” a suggestion another, perhaps a senior officer, responded to almost immediately with an order: “No! Do not burn them’.

As the Police officer battling to stay alive turns and continues to wriggle in pain, another person in a white fez cap, as if alarmed, shouted: “He is not dead! He is not dead” as he moves and rains a number of slaps on him as the dying man fell back in a sleeping position.

Calling on others’ attention, another soldier asked: “Where is their service pistol?” as another swiftly responded: “They have been collected and taken away.

In the meantime, a bulky frame in a yellow top with white fez cap is seen recording a video of the slain policemen as they made to cross check whether the officer wriggling few minutes earlier had died finally.

Upon certifying him dead, a member of the crowd, as if in victory, shouted: “He is dead! He is dead!”

Thereafter the glare falls on two of the killed policemen, one in a red shirt covered in his pool of blood and the other with a white striped shirt lying face down as the people surrounding them start plucking and dropping leaves and shrubs on them, a typical practice for accident victims.

Even more harrowing is a scene in which it becomes clear that one of the fallen policemen, the last to give up, had defecated on his body shortly before succumbing to death finally.

Lifted by two men by the hands and legs, his corpse is dumped along with the others as a soldier with a riffle walks past the bodies, shouting: “He is defecating. Do not touch the faeces”.

As the voices rise even further, a voice is heard in the background saying: “They showed us ID cards that they were from the IG (Inspector General of Police).

“They met us at the check point. If they had escaped here, they would definitely not have escaped the road block at Wukari.

Meanwhile, sources close to the investigators disclose that the order to attack the policemen, who were on lawful duty to apprehend suspected kidnap kingpin, Alhaji Hamisu Wadume, was given by an Army Captain, who is a friend of Wadume.

The unnamed army captain, it was learnt, is not just a friend, but allegedly also on Wadume’s pay roll.

According to sources, the operatives, while heading to Ibi village to make the arrest, encountered military men at three check-points. They introduced themselves, parleyed with the soldiers and exchanged pleasantries.

But when returning with the suspect, the same soldiers seen earlier at one of the check points pulled the triggers that ended the lives of three of the policemen.

“The road to Ibi village is very narrow and only that road leads to the village. You have to pass through it to enter or leave the small village.

“That was why when the policemen encountered the soldiers at the three checkpoints, They introduced themselves and stated what they came for. They chatted, joked and exchanged pleasantries.

“The arrest was made within 20 minutes and while they were returning, soldiers at the first and second check points asked them if they were already through.

“The soldiers and operatives know one another, but the phone call from a top military personnel changed everything,” a source said.

Sources said the policemen were attacked at the second military check-point in the village.

It was further revealed that the policemen were taken unawares as the soldiers allegedly opened fire on the bus conveying the operatives, with the shocked driver losing control of his wheel, leading the bus to somersault under the barrage of gun fire.

Policemen, who were fast enough to crawl out of the damaged vehicle fled into the bush and the soldiers, upon getting to the scene and realising they were still alive, allegedly shot three operatives and a civilian among them at close range.

Two of the recovered corpses had bullet holes in their stomach, the other two, had bullet holes in their chests.

Being a small town, within a twinkle of an eye, the scene of the accident and attack swarmed with people as seen in the video and as the soldiers labelled the policemen kidnappers, the people went wild with jubilation.

The arrival of the people to the scene actually saved the lives of two policemen, who had earlier crawled to hide.

It was gathered that they would have been shot dead too, but for the crowd and they were taken to a part of the army base where deliberations were allegedly held regarding whether to kill them or not.

One of the soldiers reportedly told his colleagues that killing them would be too risky because most of the villagers already captured them alive on their smart phones.

Upon telling them the videos would give them away, the soldiers reluctantly took them to a hospital.

A source expressed belief that from what transpired, there is no doubt that these soldiers and their boss are working for the kidnapper, Wadume, who was later released.

The operatives, who were on a follow-up in an ongoing kidnapping investigation, led by an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Felix Adolije, went to Taraba State with a letter detailing their investigation and mission.

They were ambushed by the soldiers and preliminary investigation showed that the kidnap kingpin, who is presently on the run, has many security personnel in Ibi, Taraba State on his pay roll.

Operatives got to the police headquarters Jalingo, and perfected their papers as professionals before proceeding to Ibi Town, Taraba State, in their operational Toyota Hummer Bus.

The source said, “When the operatives got to Ibi town, they booked their arrival at the police station and proceeded with assistance from a policeman attached to them in the state headquarters, Jalingo, to trace and arrest Alhaji Hamisu Wadume, who is wanted because he is linked to several kidnappings in Taraba State, including a recent kidnapping in which N100million was collected as ransom.

After arresting Wadume, the operatives were heading to police headquarters at Jalingo, when gang members of Wadume, who are close to an Army Captain serving in Ibi town, called the army and told him that his friend had been kidnapped.

“Without any verification or inquiries, the Army Captain ordered his men along the highway to ambush the policemen. Thus, as the team was moving along Ibi-Jalingo Road, they came under the hail of bullets from soldiers.

The soldiers came from behind with another vehicle, as a result the policemen’s bus summersaulted.

Thereafter, two policemen and one civilian agent were shot to death by the soldiers at close range.

The policemen were shot despite presenting their police identification cards. These policemen also wore police jackets.

All the policemen were alive when their vehicles somersaulted. Two operatives, Inspector Mark Idiale and Inspector Abah Mathias, were seriously injured with bullets.

They are now receiving treatment at the General Hospital Wukari in Taraba State. Policemen from Ibi Area Command responded to calls and took the injured and dead officers to the hospital.

Wadume, who was rescued and released by the soldiers, is presently on the run.

”It is believed that Wadume and other members of his gang escaped with him to a location outside Ibi Town.

“One AK47 rifle and two pistols belonging to the late police officers were carted away by the gang members of Wadume who came to the scene with the soldiers while two of the police AK47 rifles are with the soldiers as admitted by one of their personnel at the scene.”

Source: Vanguard newspaper.