Fight against bandits: Seven police officers killed in kaduna auto crash

Seven policemen attached to the Special Forces Unit have died, while eleven of them sustained injuries in a ghastly motor accident on Tuesday on their way to Katsina to boost the ongoing fight against bandits in the State.

Penpushing reports that, the Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, made this known in a statement adding that the injured were currently receiving treatment at  hospital in Kaduna as at the time of filing this report.

The police spokesman said the incident, which occurred at Jaji town along Kaduna-Zaria Road on Sunday, involved an 18-seater Toyota Hummer Bus conveying 18 personnel of the unit, adding that the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, had condoled the families and friends of the seven officers.

Penpushing further reports that Mba said the Inspector General of Police described the incident as a huge loss to the Force, adding that it was one of the unfortunate sacrifices officers often encounter in the line of duty, describing the deceased as “Heroes of Peace”.

The statement added that a team of police medical personnel had been dispatched to Kaduna State where the 11 officers that survived the accident were receiving medical attention, stating that three of the deceased officers had been buried according to Islamic rites while the remains of the other four had been deposited in a morgue.

“The IGP has directed the Police Accounts and Budget Department to ensure the immediate payment of the burial expenses, benefits and other entitlements to the families of the deceased officers, ”the statement said.