Police grill DSS operative over Abuja market shooting

• DSS operative involved in the shooting incident in Abuja is in police custody, and an investigation is ongoing, says FCT Commissioner of Police
• The incident occurred during a dispute at a fashion designer’s shop, leading to protests and injuries to several people

Haruna Garba, the Commissioner of Police for the Federal Capital Territory Command, has revealed that a Department of State Services operative involved in a shooting incident that left several people injured and hospitalized has been arrested and detained.

Garba revealed that the investigation into the incident was ongoing, denying allegations that the DSS operative was free.

The DSS operative is still in our custody; he has not been released, and the investigation is ongoing, said the CP.

On Thursday night, a violent protest erupted, quickly quenched by police in response to the shooting of a fashion designer by a DSS operative, who also shot indiscriminately and injured several others.

According to reports, a client brought the operative to the fashion designer’s shop after he allegedly failed to deliver some clothes on time.

According to a market trader who did not want her name published for fear of being victimized, some of the fashion designer’s colleagues who learned about the situation intervened. Still, their intervention did not sit well with the DSS operative.

She claims that the security guard was arrested and detained by police after allegedly shooting the fashion designer.

A female customer of the fashion designer brought the DSS. She said the fashion designer did not sew her clothes. Her colleagues joined and defended her. The issue led to a serious argument. The DSS operative was arrested and detained at Wuse Market Police Station, the trader added.

The spokesman of the DSS, Peter Afunanya, had, in a statement on Thursday, said the secret police was investigating the matter.

He said;

The attention of the Department of State Services has been drawn to an incident that occurred a few hours ago between its staff and a mob at the Garki Market, Abuja. Information at the disposal of the Service was that its FCT Command responded to an SOS from their field operatives who allegedly came under a mob attack in the said market.

Consequently, the Service has commenced an investigation into the matter. The public is assured that details of the inquiries will be communicated as soon as possible. The Service assures that it will not hesitate to mete out a proper disciplinary measure(s) to its staff if found culpable or running foul of Standard Operating Procedures on dealing with a member of the public.