Billy Graham Abel, Yola
A soldier on special duty in Monguno local government of Yobe State has been nabbed alongside a civilian allegedly for armed robbery and carjacking in Yola.
Confirming the arrest of the duo, the Public Relations Officer of Adamawa State Police Command, DSP Sulaiman Nguroje, said the incident happened in the early hours of Tuesday around 1:00 am near the popular target junction in the heart of the state capital.
“The suspects were said to have accosted a lady along Target Junction at gunpoint and forced her to surrender her Toyota Camry car.
“Luckily enough, the matter was reported to the nearby policemen on duty along target junction who swung into action immediately and in collaboration with vigilance operatives, arrested the suspects.
“We were able to recover the snatched car, an AK47 rifle and 35 rounds of ammunition from the suspect,” Nguroje said.
During an interrogation with our correspondent, the soldier who identified himself as Dampa Hyellambamun said he was on a special operation in Monguno.
“I got a pass to come to Yola from my base in Monguno but the pass had expired since August 10, 2019,” he said.
When asked why he resorted to robbing innocent people instead of defending them, the soldier who appeared unremorseful said, he was forced to resort to self-help because he had neither received his salary nor allowance for a long time.
“I was given a gun without salary and allowance. What do you want me to do when I’m on the verge of starvation?” he retorted.