…AS OVER 150 IMPERSONATORS ARRESTED IN LAST 18 MONTHS – GOC
By Okosun Dennis
It was a tale of woes; moments of regret, laced with gnashing of teeth as 12 young men who had impersonated personnel of the Nigerian Army were on Wednesday paraded by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division, Nigerian Army, Maj Gen Umar Thama Musa in Lagos.
Among those paraded were two dismissed personnel of the Nigerian Army for various offences and 10 other civilians, who claimed they indulged in wearing army uniforms to make ends meet and survive the harsh economic realities.
The suspects who were arrested in both the Lagos area and Ogun states respectively confessed to using the military fatigue dress with various accoutrements and fake identity cards to commit crimes and extort money from motorists.
One of the dismissed soldiers, who spoke with our correspondent, Ogbu Cyril, said he went on Absent Leave Without Pass (AWOL) in the North East after he was denied permission to travel for his wedding having applied for casual leave with a copy of the wedding card attached to his application.
Ogbu, a 27 years old dismissed Lance Corporal was serving at the 158 Task Force Battalion, Guboi Borno State before his dismissal in 2020, having enlisted into the service in 2014.
Regretting his actions, he explained that things became difficult after the marriage and subsequent dismissal hence he started wearing his uniform to carry out illegal duties; extorting money from vehicles and providing security at event centres as a means of survival.
“Since I was not allowed to proceed on my leave, on my own volition, I dropped my rifle and went on my way. After the wedding, I went back with the hope that I will have minor punishment but never knew that it would galvanise into a dismissal from the Nigerian Army,” Ogbu explained.
However, Quadri Salami, one of the impostors explained how he was arrested at Sagamu, Ogun state while coming from a party where he had provided security at an event centre and paid N10,000.
The 27 years old further revealed getting his uniform from a soldier identified as Lance Corporal Mohammed Sule who is serving in the North East. While he claimed to be a Corporal in the army, he was masquerading with an illegally procured Nigerian Airforce Identity Card with number: NAF: 12/10236, an ID he claimed he got from Lagos Island.
“I wanted to become a soldier and went for enlistment in 2013 but couldn’t make it while my friend was enlisted. However, as things became increasingly difficult, in November 2021, I got a pair of camouflage from him. I knew it was wrong for me to have gotten the uniform illegally and used it for illicit duties.”
On his part, Achi Benjamin, a Kogi State indigene converted his brother’s military uniforms to his own after his brother died in the North East battling Boko Haram insurgents. The GOC revealed that before the death of his brother, he had served at 149 Battalion, Ojo Cantonment before he was redeployed to the North East.
While dispelling the insinuations that serving military personnel are involved in sundry illegal duties, Maj Gen Musa explained that the 12 impostors arrested by “Operation Checkmate” carried out by military police personnel under 81 Division Nigerian Army, the suspects were fully dressed in military camouflage uniforms thereby portraying the Nigerian Army in bad light within its area of jurisdiction and warned that the authority would do every possible to stop such malfeasances.
Major General Musa further warned that people displaying military banners and accoutrements such as belts, pick caps and stickers on vehicles and driving a commercial vehicle in military uniform as well as driving civil vehicles painted in Army colour would be arrested as most of them are not personnel of the Nigerian Army.
To curtail such a trend, he noted that the activities of OPERATION CHECKMATE would be reinvigorated to arrest such impostors and offenders within the Division’s Area of responsibilities.
Reiterating that between January 2021 and now, over 150 impostors have been arrested, added that their preliminary investigations revealed that some of the suspects specialized in mounting roadblock along Ajah road to extort money from motorists as well as indulge in other illegal duties while dressed in Nigerian Army Camouflage uniform.
Similarly, the GOC said there are some arrested fully dressed in military uniform who were caught along the Ilaro Border area of Ogun State where they carry out smuggling of rice and other contrabands.
“We are going to hand them over to the police for prosecution. These 12 impostors were arrested between December 2021 and now. We have profiled them and got the sources of their uniforms and who made the identity card for them so that we can nip it in the bud.
“Basically, Operation Checkmate is to access the conduct of our troops outside the barracks. In the course of monitoring our personnel, these suspects were arrested. ‘Operation Checkmate’ don’t arrest only impostors but anybody who displays banners and accoutrements – jungle hat, pick cap, berets and others – to claim they are soldiers.
A lot of vehicles painted in army colour were arrested recently. These could be used by criminals and Boko Haram. Such vehicles will be arrested and impounded as the laws are there.”
On what the army authority is doing to make their uniforms difficult to access and procure, Gen Musa explained that without disputing the fact some soldiers could be involved in getting the uniforms for the criminals, added that they are monitoring some of the vendors noting that one of such vendors is presently being investigated for going against their contract. “The moment investigations are concluded, we would hand him over to the police for prosecution.”
He, however, admonished members of the public to refrain from emulating being a soldier when they are not, and at the same time, called on them to assist the military with relevant information to fight crimes in the society.
“Any illicit act or behaviour that is not of the good soldier seen in town, report to us through Civil-Military Affairs desk or any of our hotlines at all Divisional Headquarters,” Maj Gen Musa reiterated.
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