How Wadume was rearrested after Balarabe’s soldiers aided escape – Witness
A member of the Intelligence Response Unit of the Office of the Inspector-General of Police, Inspector Samuel Abila, on Monday, narrated to the Federal High Court in Abuja how a suspected kidnap kingpin, Hamisu Bala aka Wadume, was re-arrested two weeks after soldiers freed him from police custody in Taraba State on August 6, 2019.
Abila, who testified as the fourth prosecution witness in the case, said troops led by Captain Tijjani Balarabe shot at the vehicle of the policemen taking Wadume from Ibi in Taraba to Abuja.
The soldiers attached to the 93 Battalion in Takum, Taraba, allegedly killed three policemen and two civilians, while five others were wounded in the attack.
Abila told the court that Wadume escaped with gunshot wounds to Kano State.
He said the kidnap suspect was rearrested at his uncle, Rayyanu Abdul’s place in Kano on August 20, 2019.
The IG, Adamu Mohammed, had in February charged Wadume and others, including the 10 soldiers with various offences bordering on murder, kidnap and gun running, among others.
But the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), removed the names of the soldiers as defendants within days of taking over the case from the police.
Wadume and six others are now being prosecuted on 13 counts of kidnap, detention of kidnapped victim, Usman Garba, and collection of a ransom of N106m from the victim before releasing him.
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Apart from Wadume, the rest of the defendants are Inspector Aliyu Dadje, who was a station officer at police headquarters in Ibi; Auwalu Bala, aka Omo Razor; Uba Bala, aka Uba Belu; Bashir Waziri, aka Baba Runs; Zubairu Abdullahi, aka Basho; and Rayyanu Abdul.
Led in evidence by the prosecuting counsel, Mrs Yetunde Adeola-Cole, on Monday, Abila said Wadume was tracked down to Kano after investigation led the police to the suspect’s brother, Auwalu Bala, who had arrived in Abuja from Lagos.
The fourth prosecution witness said he was part of the police team that investigated the soldiers’ attack on the IRT members, Wadume’s escape from police custody and the carting away of the policemen’s arms on August 6, 2019.
He said, “Investigation led to 3rd defendant (Auwalu Bala) who was based in Lagos but came to Abuja to assist his brother, Hamisu Bala.
“He was interviewed and he told us that Hamisu Bala was his younger brother.
“I asked him about the whereabouts of his brother, Hamisu Bala. But he told me that his uncle, Rayyanu Abdul (7th defendant), based in Kano, knew Hamisu Bala’s whereabouts. So we tracked Rayyanu to Kano.
“We went to Kano where we arrested Rayyanu. When we interviewed Rayyanu, he took us to his house where we arrested Hamisu Bala. That was on August 20, 2019.”
According to Abila, Rayyanu told the investigators that “Hamisu Bala complained that he had wounds on his legs.”
The witness said, “He (Rayyanu) then called a doctor who treated him at home.
