The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has stated that the military personnel involved in Saturday’s clash between soldiers and customers at New Banex Plaza in Abuja have been handed over to the Nigerian Army for necessary sanctions.
The FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, made this known in a statement, noting that the police had addressed the situation and restored normalcy to the area.
Personnel of the Nigerian Army Corps of Military Police reportedly stormed Banex Plaza in Abuja on Saturday evening, beating up passersby and security guards. The assault on civilians was said to be a reprisal for an earlier free-for-all between four military police personnel and some traders at the popular electronics and telecommunications gadget market earlier on Saturday.
The soldiers’ attacks on civilians and show-of-force by the military police occurred a few hours after the FCT Commissioner of Police, Bennet Igweh, had settled the scuffle between the soldiers and the traders at the police command.
The FCT police spokesperson stated, “Following a reported unrest at Bannex Plaza on May 18, 2024, at about 01:30 PM, involving some occupants of the plaza, customers, and some soldiers, operatives of the FCT police command swiftly mobilized to the scene, assessed the situation, and restored order.
“Preliminary investigation revealed that one Suleiman Ahmed, who had earlier purchased a phone from Suleiman Ibrahim, a shop owner at New Bannex, went with four soldiers to persuade the seller for a replacement upon discovering that the phone was faulty, which met with resistance from the shop owner.
“This action resulted in a confrontation and squabble with the military personnel. This development led some irate mobs to attack the military personnel, causing an uproar in the area.
“All parties were invited for questioning, and the military personnel have been handed over to their organization for necessary action to be taken.
“While normalcy has since been restored in Bannex and its environs, the Commissioner of Police FCT, CP Benneth Igweh, urges residents to peacefully go about their lawful businesses without fear from any quarters.”