From John Adams, Minna
The Niger state Police Command says it has arrested no fewer that 14 people in connection with the murder of the District Head of Lambatta in Gowu Babangida Local Government area of Niger state, Alhaji Mohammed Abdulsafur on Saturday last week.
Recalled that some irate youths from the town, in their large numbers stormed the residence of the Village head of Lambata and beat him to dead over chieftaincy tussle.
The irate youths who were alleged not to be happy with the appointment of Alhaji Mohammed Abdulsafur as the District Head of Lambatta by the Emir of Suleja, Alhaji Awwal Ibrahim, attacked the village head in his palace and inflicted serious injuries on him and his younger brother, one Ibrahim Mohammed.
The District Head was later confirmed dead in the hospital, as a result of the serious injuries he sustained during the attack.
In a statement by the Police Public Relation Officer of the Command, DSP Wasiu Abiodun in Minna, said the Police operatives led by Area Commander Suleja, conducted a house-to- house raid on the instruction of the Commissioner of Police, Niger State Command CP Ogundele J. Ayodeji after the incident and arrested 14 suspects in connection with the murder.
Wasiu in the statement gave the names of the suspects to include, Umar Ilyasu Sarki (37), Musa M. Musa (47), Yakubu Bissala (23), Hussaini Mohammed (18), Usman Habibu (40), Ibrahim Umar (45), Ismaila Mohammed (38), Ademola Okunola (51),Ilyasu Dantani (28), Yakubu Mohammed (35), Yusuf Sarki (49), Atiku Mohammed, Adamu Yusuf (46) and Bashir Mohammed (27)
According to the Police “During interrogation, the suspects confessed that there has been a lingering issue of chieftaincy tussle between the late village head and Umar Ilyasu Sarki, who claimed that the thirty-seven District heads (Mai-Angwa) in the community are loyal to him; and that they did not recognize the late village head as their leader”.
The statement added that “the suspects mentioned other members who participated in the act as Hamza Umar Sarki, Dauda Umar Sarki, Abdulkarim Dantani, Zubairu Moh’d, Zayanu Ladan, Jibril Garba and others presently at large”.
Wasiu pointed out that Effort is ongoing to arrest fleeing members of the group as the investigation is being intensified, while the suspects will be arraigned in court for diligent prosecution.