Gen. Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, has ordered a comprehensive investigation into the reported deaths of two Okuama community leaders while in army custody.
Director of Defence Information, Brig. Gen. Tukur Gusau, said this at a press briefing held by the Strategic Communications Inter-agency Committee in the Office of the National Security Adviser on Monday in Abuja.
The Okuama leaders who passed away are Pa Denis Okugbaye, the Okuama community’s treasurer and Pa James Oghoroko, the community’s president-general.
The two reportedly passed away six days apart while in military custody. In August, the two were arrested along with four other people, namely Mr. Dennis Malaka, Mrs. Mabel Owhemu, Chief Belvis Adogbo and Prof. Arthur Ekpekpo.
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They had been arrested in relation to the March 14 murder of 17 soldiers in Okuama while on a peace mission to settle a conflict between the Okuama and Okoloba villages.
Brig. Gen. Gusau stated that the army’s 6 Division in Port Harcourt was instructed by the defence chief to thoroughly investigate the claims and submit its findings on Monday, December 16.
“Regarding allegations of deaths in detention over the weekend, headlines surfaced suggesting that individuals detained in connection with the Okuama incident had died.
“Immediately, the chief of defence staff directed an investigation to be conducted by the 6 Division any moment from now. We expect the findings on whether the claims are true or not. For now, these remain allegations.
“We are committed to uncovering the truth, and by tomorrow, we will have more details,” he said.