New facts have emerged with regards to the man who was arrested with explosives strapped around his waist in a bank in Jos, Plateau State.
The man who was arrested while trying to rob the bank of N100m on Tuesday have narrated how he was forced by kidnappers into the act.
The suspect spoke with PUNCH Metro on Tuesday at the Police Command headquarters in Jos where he was paraded alongside other suspects.
Speaking on his involvement in crime, the suspect identified himself as a student of the Plateau State Polytechnic.
He said, “My name is Benjamin Basil. I’m an ND 1 student at Plateau State Polytechnic, studying Civil Engineering. I’m 17 years old and I reside opposite the Police Staff College in Jos.
“So, yesterday (May 13), I was on my way to school around 9 am. And I was kidnapped along the way near the Police Staff College. They (the kidnappers) instructed me to raise my shirt.
“When I asked them why I should raise my shirt, one of them told me that they would shoot me dead if I didn’t cooperate with them.
“I raised my hands and after a while, they told me that what they just wrapped up my waist was a suicide bomb. They searched me and took my phone and money and after a while, they gave it back to me. Thereafter, they told me that they would take me to the bank. They handed over two bags to me and instructed me to bring N100m.
“They said they would be waiting for me at the gate of the bank. And that if I didn’t do it, they would just shoot me dead. At this point, I wrote it down and they took advantage of the situation.
“They said that I should inform the bank cashier that I was wrapped with a suicide bomb. And that 12 of their men were waiting outside with AK 47 to confront anyone in case the cashier called for help.
Narrating his ordeal, Basil said the kidnappers then called a motorcyclist and paid him to convey him to the UBA branch at Dadinkowa.
“When I met the cashier inside the bank, he agreed that he wouldn’t call for help. But suddenly, I noticed that everybody in the bank started running. And I was scared as I thought that the kidnappers outside had started coming inside the bank. So, I ran outside and the bank security officials dragged me down.”
But in a twist, the State Commissioner of Police, Emmanuel Olugbenga, who paraded Basil alongside other suspects, told journalists that what was wrapped on him was discovered not to be bomb explosives.
The Commissioner, however, said that investigations into the various cases of the terrorists were ongoing. He stated that they would be charged to court upon completion.
“The case is currently under investigation at the State CID. We have to ascertain the validity of his claims and arrest possible suspects”, the Commissioner stated.
Olugbenga, however, commended the good and peace-loving citizens of Plateau State for collaborating with the police. He urged them to always feed the police with accurate, timely and useful information. Which, he said, can helped them in their job of securing lives and property.
source: PUNCH