One injured as police, soldiers engage in shoot-out over rice

There was a shootout between policemen and soldiers on Thursday over the distribution of rice to indigent people at the Borno State Government House, Maiduguri.

One policeman was reported injured in the incidence, while some of the soldiers were arrested.

Reports say the policemen were standing guard over the distribution of the rice to people with the requisite documentation, when the soldiers appeared to partake in the sharing.

Read also: Shettima angry, orders police, DSS to fish out ‘thieves’ diverting IDP’s rice

They were however turned back by the policemen, who informed them that they had to have the required documents to be part of the exercise ensuing in a standoff between both groups, with one policeman injured in the fracas.

Some of the soldiers were reportedly arrested, even as their colleagues tried to set them free resulting in a tensed atmosphere, with citizens avoiding the area, for fear of the unknown.

It would be recalled that an angry Governor Kashim Shettima, had also recently ordered a probe into the alleged diversion of rice meant for Internally Displaced People, IDPs, in the state.

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