Abuja riot: Nigeria police arrests suspects, says no life was lost

macfranc007 November 09, 2017 Nigeria News today & Breaking news ▷ Read Nigerian newspapers 24/7 Jerrywright Ukwu

- The city center of Nigeria's capital, Abuja witnessed a major riot on Wednesday, November 8

- Some taxi drivers took over major roads in the metropolis to protest the alleged killing of one of their colleagues by a task force officials

- The Federal Capital Territory police command has waded into the situation and made some arrests

The FCT police command said that it arrested some suspects in connection with the disturbance between operatives of the Directorate of Road Transport Services (VIO) task-force and cab operators at Wuse area of the FCT.

The command’s spokesman, DSP Anjuguri Manzah, in a statement on Wednesday, November 8, however, said that normalcy had been restored.

Though, he did not mention the number of suspects arrested.

“Some hoodlums who were trying to take advantage of the false rumor to cause problem in the FCT have been arrested and investigation is in progress,’’ he said.

FCT Police Command arrest suspects over Wuse disturbance

The protest quickly escalated into a major riot causing heavy vehicular traffic in the city. Photo credit: Twitter/@IamDavidSkillz

He said that the disturbance followed a misunderstanding between operatives of VIO taskforce and cab operators at Wuse.

Manzah said that contrary to speculations making rounds, no life was lost, nor was anyone injured during the disturbance.

The spokesman reiterated the command’s commitment to protect lives and property in the territory.

He advised members of the public to always follow the right channel in expressing their grievances instead of resorting to self-help.

He enjoined residents to go about their lawful businesses as adequate security measures had been deployed by the command.

FCT Police Command arrest suspects over Wuse disturbance

A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria who was at the scene of the disturbance reports that the incident caused traffic gridlock for several hours.

The cab operators blocked most link routes to Wuse, forcing motorists to take alternative roads.

Many commuters were also stranded as they could not get vehicles to take them to their various destinations.

NAIJ.com had reported that taxi drivers operating in the city center set up bonfires and blocked major roads due to the alleged shooting of their colleague by a soldier attached to the city's task force.

The protest started from the popular Wuse market and quickly spread to other parts of the capital causing panic in the city.

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