Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The father of a serving National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member who was shot dead by soldiers in Abuja has said that military operatives admitted to him that the killing was a mistake, contradicting the official narrative that his son died during an exchange of gunfire between troops and armed robbers. Sani Jimoh, a civil engineer whose 24‑year‑old son, Abdulsamad Jamiu, was killed in the early hours of Saturday, April 25, 2026, at Shagari Estate in Dei‑Dei, Abuja, made the revelation during an interview that has deepened the controversy surrounding the incident and intensified calls for an independent investigation.
Jimoh, who was away in Okene, Kogi State, attending his mother’s funeral at the time of the shooting, said he received a frantic call from his daughter, Farida, who witnessed the incident. She told him that soldiers had entered their home by scaling the fence, fired a shot through the closed door of her brother’s room, and killed him instantly. Jimoh said he immediately contacted the soldiers on the scene by phone. During the conversation, he asked how the situoation could have escalated into a fatal shooting inside a locked room. According to Jimoh, the soldiers responded simply: “Oga calm down, it was a mistake.”
The father’s account directly contradicts the statement issued by the Guards Brigade headquarters, which claimed that Jamiu was caught in a crossfire during a security operation. The military alleged that troops responded to a distress call about an armed robbery attack in the area. “Upon arrival, the troops came under gunfire from the fleeing armed robbers, resulting in a brief but intense exchange,” the statement read. The army also said it had launched a full investigation and extended its condolences to the family.
However, Jamiu’s family has categorically rejected the military’s version of events, maintaining that there was no robbery in the community that night and that the soldiers gave no warning before they opened fire. In a detailed statement, the family argued that physical evidence at the scene disproves the claim of an exchange of gunfire. The family noted that the bullet trajectory — from the exterior side of Jamiu’s door to the interior wall — establishes that the fatal shot was fired from outside a closed room, not during a chaotic shootout. “This is not consistent with a firefight. This is consistent with military personnel discharging a lethal weapon through a closed door at a person they could not see and who posed no identified, verified, or established threat,” the family said.
The family also raised serious concerns about the handling of evidence. They alleged that soldiers instructed members of the community vigilance group, who arrived after being alerted by neighbours, to mop up the blood and flush it away. Jamiu’s sister, who was present in the house at the time, was reportedly told by the soldiers to go outside and “calm down.” The family also claimed that no weapon was recovered from the scene and that no shell casings attributed to any party other than the military were documented.
Jimoh further disclosed that the Divisional Police Officer of the Deidei police station described the incident as “an unfortunate and careless error” when he arrived at the scene. According to the father, the police authorities also required him to submit a written statement and an undertaking before his son’s body could be released for burial.
The Nigerian Army has since sent a delegation, led by S. O. Buhari, to visit the family and inspect the scene. The delegation assured the family that the officers involved would be investigated and held accountable. However, the family has remained steadfast in its demand for an independent, transparent investigation outside the military’s chain of command, with full civilian oversight. They are also calling for the immediate retraction of the army’s initial statement, a formal public apology, and the prosecution of the personnel responsible for the shooting.
Senator Ireti Kingibe, who represents the Federal Capital Territory, has waded into the matter, calling for a thorough and transparent inquiry. She described Jamiu’s death as “a stark reminder of the fragility of life and the urgent need for heightened caution and professionalism in all security operations.”
Jamiu, a civil engineering graduate of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, was just a month away from completing his national service in Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State. His body was later taken to Kubwa General Hospital by the police before being released to his family for burial.
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