The Nigerian Army authorities on Monday said it has begun investigations into the circumstances that led to the killing of two soldiers by another soldier.

The killer soldier who reportedly ran amok also shot himself dead immediately after killing his colleagues. The incident took place in the Forward Operations Base (FOB) Rabbah, Sokoto State.

In a press release titled, ‘NIGERIAN ARMY COMMENCES INVESTIGATION ON SOLDIER WHO SHOT COLLEAGUES IN RABBAH SOKOTO’, the Director Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, described it as an “unfortunate incident of a soldier, who killed his colleagues and himself at Forward Operations Base (FOB) Rabbah, Sokoto State”.

He gave details of the tragedy saying: “The sad and rare incident occurred in the evening of Sunday 5 March 2023 at the FOB, where troops were deployed for Internal Security Operations.

“The circumstances leading to the incident could not be immediately ascertained, as the soldier who killed his colleagues also shot himself immediately, terminating his own life.

“The General Officer Commanding (GOC) 8 Division Nigerian Army, who also doubles as the Commander Joint Task Force Northwest Operation Hadarin Daji Major General Godwin Mutkut and other senior officers have visited the location, where he commiserated with troops for losing their colleagues in such an unfortunate situation.

“He urged them to be their brother’s keepers and report any anomaly observed amongst their colleagues in order to forestall such incidents. He also encouraged them to remain calm and committed in the discharge of their duties.

“The authorities of the Nigerian Army are deeply concerned about this unusual and ugly development and have therefore instituted a Board of Inquiry (BOI) to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident.

“It is envisaged that the findings of the BOI will help forestall such ugly and bizarre occurrence in the future.”