An officer of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has mistakenly shot Christian Oladimeji, an assistant superintendent of immigration (ASI), in Minna, Niger state.
Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert focused on the Lake Chad region, disclosed this on Saturday in a post on his X handle.
According to reports, a Surveillance Patrol Team from the ‘A’ Division Police Command in Minna, led by ASP Ibrahim Audu Paiko, was conducting a routine patrol near the Obasanjo Complex when they spotted a group of road construction workers carrying iron rods suspected to be stolen.
Upon sighting the officers, the workers abandoned the materials and fled. However, as the police attempted to recover the abandoned items, they were suddenly attacked by other road construction workers and hoodlums, who pelted them with stones and other objects.
The attack also damaged the Dangote Patrol Vehicle used by the police. In an attempt to disperse the mob, ASP Ibrahim Audu fired a shot, which accidentally struck ASI Christian Oladimeji, who was passing by on a motorcycle.
“The bullet hit her in the lap, causing her to fall from the motorcycle and sustain additional injuries,” the report stated.
Oladimeji was immediately rushed to the IBB Specialist Hospital in Minna, where medical personnel confirmed that while no bullet fragments remained in her body, she had suffered a fracture in her waist.
Authorities have taken several suspects into custody for questioning, while disciplinary measures have been launched against the officers implicated in the incident.
“We are conducting a thorough investigation into the incident, and necessary actions will be taken,” a security source was quoted as saying.
