The Nigerian Army has reacted to reports that a soldier allegedly killed a fruit vendor, Abdulkadir Musa, in Gusau, the Zamfara state capital.

News Expresshad on Monday reported that a fruit vendor was allegedly shot dead by a soldier after refusing to make payment for fruit he bought and walk away with his bunch of fruits without paying.

Reacting to the report in a statement he issued on Tuesday, the Director Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Muhammed Yerima, on behalf of the Nigerian Army noted that the General Officer Commanding 8 Division, Major General Usman Yusuf, had ordered an investigation into the incident.

The army spokesman stated that the perpetrator of the crime would be subjected to investigations and would subsequently be prosecuted if found wanting.

“The Nigerian Army wishes to state that the sad incident is quite regrettable and condole with the family of the deceased.

“It is worthy of note that the General Officer Commanding 8 Division, Major General Yusuf, has since commissioned an investigation to unravel the circumstances that led to the altercations which eventually claimed one life as efforts are ongoing to arrest the yet-to-be-identified perpetrator,” he stated.

The Nigerian Army, however, said no military operational vehicle was set ablaze.

It assured the people of Zamfara state that normalcy has been restored in the general area adding that the Army is also working to put in place measures to ensure that such incident never occur again.