Police personnel in Bauchi have arrested a 300-level student of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Atim Emmanuel, 23, in possession of a revolver and cartridge.
ATBU Senate had ordered the immediate closure of the university following a protest by students after suspected armed robbers stabbed a 500-level Geology student of the university to death early this month.
Prompt security response prevented protesting students in two campuses of the university – Yelwa and Gubi – from blocking major highways and possibly causing a breakdown in public order.
Spokesperson of Bauchi Police Command, SP Ahmed Muhammed Wakil, confirmed the arrest in a statement made available to reporters in Bauchi.
“During interrogation, the suspect confessed that he got the firearm from one Zadog who leased it to him for two academic semesters at the rate of N12,000.
“He further stated that he acquired the firearm for his protection and security from criminals.
“The Commissioner of Police Bauchi State has directed that the suspect be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for a discreet investigation to unravel more circumstances behind his motives for acquiring the firearm and to determine whether he has killed anyone with it after which he will be charged to court upon completion of the discreet investigation,” the statement read in parts.
The Commissioner of Police, Auwal Musa, called on parents, guardians, and leaders wielding various degrees of influence to prevail on their children and wards to guide them against being used as cannon-fodders in disrupting the relative peace and tranquility enjoyed in the state.
