Some officials of the Kogi State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps( NSCDC) have been accused of aiding the escape of some suspects who were arrested for pipeline vandalism.
Daily Trust gathered that five suspects whose names were given as Hassan Sani, Auwal Mohamed, Mohamed Mustapha , Mudashiru Abubakar and Ibrahim Rabiu were arrested by the anti-vandals unit of the corps on Thursday.
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The suspects were said to have been arrested while ferrying products siphoned from the Niger Delta region to the north.
When interrogated, they reportedly confessed that the products, which were in two trucks were illegally scooped from a pipeline at a forest in one of the oil-rich states.
They were subsequently detained but a source told Daily Trust that the suspects escaped from the cell through the connivance of some officers.
“These suspects can not escape on their own; it was made possible with the aid of some officers because the wall of the cell is so high and solid that it will be very difficult to break.”
“We understand that one of the suspects in the cell gave a phone number of a certain fellow who in turn reached out to some of our men that facilitated their escape,” said an official who craved anonymity.
The guard in charge of the cell whose name was given as Aliu Sunday was said to be heavily drunk on the day the suspects escaped.
When contacted, the state commandant, Samuel Peter Maigari, confirmed the incident, adding that he has ordered the detention of those on duty when the suspects escaped.
He said a full investigation will be conducted to fish out those who facilitated the escape.
However, he denied knowledge of any syndicate in the command or any one who collected bribe to facilitate the escape of the suspects.
