As police continue to probe the killing of former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, sources say two principal suspects have been arrested.
According to ChannelsTV, the investigations carried out so far revealed that the suspects were directly involved in the attack that led to the death of Badeh.
The source added that three suspects had earlier been apprehended, although the police could not confirm their direct involvement in the attack.
They were, however, said to have been instrumental in the arrest of the two principal suspects.
The arrest came one week after the former Defence Chief was killed by gunmen in an attack him while he was returning from his farm along Abuja-Keffi Road.
His death had triggered reactions from the Federal Government and its critics who called for a thorough investigation into the circumstances that led to the killing.
Consequently, some reports alleged that the deceased Air Chief Marshal was not provided with adequate security, a situation they said led to his death.
They also claimed that Badeh’s driver who was shot during the incident had died.
The Nigerian Air Force, however, condemned the reports in a statement in which it said the driver was alive.
It also faulted the claims that the former Defence Chief was not provided with adequate security, stressing that the reports were far from the truth.
“Air Chief Marshal Badeh has always been provided with the full complement of personal staff and security personnel commensurate with his status as a former Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), CDS and a 4-star general in the Armed Forces of Nigeria,” the NAF stated.
Badeh served as the 18th Chief of Air Staff until his appointment as Chief of Defence Staff in January 2014 and retired a year after.
The 61-year-old Air Force boss was killed on 18 December, 2018 but his driver survived and recuperating in an undisclosed hospital.
” ….. the driver is alive and recuperating extremely well at one of our Nigeria Air Froce Hospitals,’’ the Director of Public Relations and Information of Nigeria Air Force (NAF), Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, confirmed.
Daramola said some of the reports erroneously stated that the driver of the late former CDS, who was also shot during the incident, was dead.
He appealed to those spreading misinformation about the unfortunate incident that led to the death of Badeh to stop.
He said spreading of erroneous reports and comments in the media on the incident could have adverse effects on the conduct of ongoing operations.
He noted that other reports alleged that adequate security was not provided for the deceased Air Chief Marshal.
The NAF stated that nothing could be further from the truth.
” Air Chief Marshal Badeh has always been provided with the full complement of personal staff and security personnel commensurate with his status as a former Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), CDS and a 4-star general in the Armed Forces of Nigeria,” he said.
NAF stated that substantial progress had already been made in the investigation and details would be communicated at the appropriate time.
” As mentioned by the CAS, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, on Dec. 19, the NAF is working closely with other relevant security agencies to determine the circumstances surrounding the death of the former CDS.’’