Community sources have accused police officers of shooting dead a 15-year-old boy and injuring several other people during a Maulid celebration in Banki, Bama Local Government Area of Borno State, following an alleged complaint by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) over noise from the religious gathering.
The incident reportedly occurred on October 18, 2026, when police officers allegedly returned to the venue of the Islamic religious celebration, disrupted the gathering, assaulted participants, fired tear gas and gunshots, and damaged sound equipment and other belongings.
The community sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of intimidation by the police, alleged that the confrontation followed an earlier visit by the DPO, who had complained that the volume of the religious recitation was too loud.
According to one of the sources, who said he knew the organiser of the event, popularly identified as the “chairman,” the celebration was taking place in front of the organiser’s residence when the DPO arrived with his driver and a police orderly identified as Abdullahi.
The source said the organiser and his brother, Malam Idris, greeted the police officer, who subsequently complained about the volume of the sound coming from the gathering.
“He said the sound was too much and that even when he was in his office at the police station, he felt as if the recitation was taking place inside his room,” the source recounted.
The source explained that the DPO did not order the organisers to stop the celebration or remove their speakers but only asked them to reduce the volume.
According to him, the organiser responded by switching off and bringing down two high-frequency speakers, while the remaining speakers on the ground continued playing at a reduced volume that could not be heard beyond the street.
He said the DPO remained at the venue for approximately 40 to 50 minutes before leaving without any further confrontation.
However, the source alleged that police officers returned to the area later that evening in two vehicles with their headlights switched off.
He claimed that the officers subsequently cut off the electricity supply to the sound system, switched off the generator powering the equipment and began attacking people participating in the religious gathering.
“They came and cut off the electricity to the sound system and switched off the generator. They started beating people with batons, firing tear gas and later shooting guns,” the source alleged.
The source said the sudden arrival and actions of the officers triggered panic at the venue, forcing participants to scramble for safety as the situation escalated.
He further alleged that several people sustained injuries during the incident, with some suffering broken bones, while sound equipment and other personal belongings were damaged.
The most serious allegation concerned the death of a 15-year-old boy who was reportedly attending the Maulid celebration as a student.
According to the source, the teenager was shot in the neck during the incident and died at the scene.
“During the shooting, they shot the young man who later died. He was one of the students attending the religious gathering. They shot him right there at the venue, and he fell to the ground,” the source said.
The community source also alleged that police officers took away mobile phones, speakers, sound equipment and other belongings during the operation.
Insisting that his account was based on his personal experience, the source maintained that he witnessed the incident firsthand and was not merely repeating information obtained from other people.
“I am an eyewitness to everything I am describing. This is not hearsay or a story someone told me,” he said.
The allegations have prompted calls from community sources for the Borno State Police Command to investigate the circumstances surrounding the teenager’s death and establish the roles played by the officers involved in the operation.
The sources specifically appealed to the Borno State Commissioner of Police, Nazir Abdulmajid, to ensure a transparent and impartial investigation into the incident, including the alleged use of force against participants at the religious gathering.
They also called for appropriate disciplinary action against any officers found culpable and compensation for the family of the deceased teenager.
The incident raises questions about the circumstances surrounding the alleged use of force at the gathering, particularly given the claim that the organisers had complied with the DPO’s earlier request to reduce the volume of the sound system.
However, the allegations remain those of the community sources, and the circumstances surrounding the teenager’s death have yet to be independently established.
Efforts to obtain an official response from the Borno State Police Command were unsuccessful. The Command’s spokesperson, ASP Kenneth Daso, reportedly neither answered calls to his mobile phone nor responded to a text message sent to him seeking comments on the incident.
As of the time of reporting, no official response from the police had been obtained regarding the allegations, the reported death of the 15-year-old boy, or the alleged injuries and destruction of property during the Maulid celebration.