In a major security scare, the Nigerian military is investigating the dramatic escape of nine soldiers from a military guardroom inside the Maimalari Cantonment in Maiduguri, Borno State.
The incident, which happened in the early hours of Monday around 2:15 a.m., threw the entire cantonment into confusion. Maimalari Cantonment is the headquarters of the Nigerian Army’s 7th Division one of the key bases in the fight against insurgency in the North-East.
According to reliable military sources, the escapees were being held over serious national security concerns. Many of them were reportedly detained for alleged links to Boko Haram and for suspected involvement in illegal arms supply to terrorist groups operating in the region.
“There was a jailbreak on Monday around 0215 hours at the military Maimalari Cantonment in Maiduguri, Borno State. Nine personnel detained mostly for dealing in arms running with terrorists escaped,” one military source revealed.
Another source confirmed that one of the escapees had been rearrested while efforts were ongoing to track down the remaining eight.
“One of them was arrested after the incident in the bush. It’s a very major security breach, imagine something like this happening inside a military barracks. It’s so shameful,” the source added.
The incident has raised concerns over the growing cases of internal compromise within the armed forces.
Former Chief of Defence Staff, General Leo Irabor (retd.), had previously condemned the rise in cases of military personnel aiding terrorists and bandits.
In a memo circulated during his tenure, Irabor urged commanders to caution their men against collaborating with enemies of the state.
“Recent happenings in various theatres of operation reveal an increase in cases of aiding and abetting by personnel,” the letter, signed on his behalf by one C.E. Oji, read.
“It would be recalled that a soldier was arrested by a covert intelligence team for conniving with a confirmed terrorist informant known as Babagana Kura in Bama LGA, Borno State.”
The letter warned that such insider activities continued to undermine military operations and strengthen insurgent networks.
In 2022, a soldier identified as Lance Corporal Abdullahi Jibrin, an instructor with the Nigerian Army Battalion in Geidam, Yobe State, reportedly took his own life after being arrested for allegedly collaborating with Boko Haram members who attacked Yobe communities.
Jibrin, who had disappeared from his duty post, was later spotted among the insurgents that attacked Geidam. Army intelligence operatives later tracked him down to Gashua, several kilometres away from his station.
The recent escape in Maiduguri has now reignited public concern about security lapses within the nation’s military facilities, especially in the insurgency-hit North-East.
(SaharaReporters)
