Sani Jimoh has stated that military operatives told him the killing of his son, Abdulsamad Jamiu, was a mistake, following an incident involving troops of the Nigerian Army Guards Brigade in Dei-Dei, Abuja.
Jamiu, a serving member of the National Youth Service Corps, was killed on April 25 in Shagari Estate. In an earlier statement, the army said the incident occurred during a response to a distress call about armed robbers.
The military said troops, upon arrival, came under gunfire from fleeing armed robbers, leading to a brief but intense exchange.
However, the family has rejected that account, insisting that physical evidence does not support claims of a gun battle.
Speaking after the incident, Jimoh said he was in Kogi State for his mother’s funeral when he received a distress call around 2 a.m., adding that soldiers later explained how the incident occurred.
He said the soldiers told him they were pursuing a suspect but could not locate the individual, prompting them to access his compound from the rear after noticing tampered barbed wire, which led them to believe someone had entered the premises.
Jimoh said he questioned how the operatives gained entry into the house, and they responded that the main door appeared unlocked, after which they attempted to force open his son’s room, where someone was allegedly resisting from inside.
He further stated that he pressed the soldiers on how the situation escalated into a fatal shooting inside the room, adding that they admitted it was a mistake and urged him to remain calm.
A delegation from the army later visited the family, while police from the Dei-Dei division reportedly described the incident as an unfortunate error. The family said they were asked to submit a statement before the body could be released. Jamiu’s sister, Jamiu Farida, who witnessed the incident, gave a different account, alleging intimidation by soldiers.
Farida said she pleaded with the soldiers not to harm her when they asked her to come outside, adding that they showed her a damaged barbed wire and a broken window, which they claimed had been altered.
She said she initially thought her brother had escaped but later discovered he had been shot after struggling with the soldiers who tried to prevent her from entering the room.
Farida said she ran outside screaming after seeing her brother’s lifeless body and alleged that one of the soldiers threatened her to keep quiet.
She also claimed that vigilantes were invited to clean the scene, alleging that blood stains were cleared and parts of the victim’s remains were removed and buried nearby.
The victim’s mother, Abubakar Habiba, said she was out of town at the time and only learned of the incident after receiving a call from a neighbour around 2:30 a.m. reporting gunshots.
Habiba said her son may have responded to knocks on his door before he was shot, noting that the door had visible bullet marks.
She alleged that after the shooting, soldiers invited vigilantes into the house, took cleaning materials from her kitchen, and directed them to clean up blood stains.
A friend of the deceased, Yusuf Enesi, described Jamiu as a peaceful individual, adding that there had been no prior incidents of violence in the estate.
He said they had spent the previous night together at a game centre where Jamiu engaged in recreational activities, noting that he later received news in the early hours of Saturday that his friend had been shot in his room.