Hunters Killed Police Officer Not VGN Members – Taraba VGN Command

The Taraba State Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) denied the allegation that their members killed a police officer in the State.

This was disclosed by the State VPRO of the group, Suleiman Aliyu in Jalingo.

According to him, the incident occurred when members of the hunters gathered in large numbers and were allegedly well-armed with AK-47 rifles.

When a team of special strike forces attached to the Government House stopped them for interrogation, the hunters started shooting, leading to the death of a police officer.

Aliyu clarified that members of the VGN have never owned live ammunition, let alone AK-47s. He emphasized that the VGN is well-disciplined and coordinated.

Furthermore, Commander Munir Bello Abubakar, who is the North-east VGN's Zonal Deputy Commander Admin, described the allegations against their members as baseless and stated that they always monitor the activities of their members.

The Hunters Association has no particular leadership and operates in different groups, unlike the VGN.

Abubakar pointed out that anyone rejected by the VGN will go and join the Hunters Groups.

The VGN condoled with the family of the deceased and the Nigerian Police Force. They pledged to continue collaborating with all security agencies in combating crimes in the State. Deputy Zonal Commander Munir Bello Abubakar assured their commitment to ensuring that the perpetrators are brought to book.

The incident happened on May 4th, 2024, when the vigilante group ambushed a team of special strike force operatives attached to the Government House in Taraba.

The police officer who died was named Tapu Godfrey.

The ambushed officers were led by SP Jamu Emmanuel, and shortly after the incident, a team of detectives from the Gassol division, led by the DCO, rushed to the scene and took the victim to General Hospital Sandirde for treatment, where he was confirmed dead by medical personnel.

The next day, the Commissioner of Police, his deputy in charge of operations, and personnel of 40PMF Jalingo embarked on a fact-finding mission on the sad development.