IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, the Inspector-General of Police, remembered how the Nigerian Air Force helped the Nigeria Police Force apprehend 2Baba, a notorious criminal in Rivers State.
The Chief of Staff of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Marshal S.K. Aneke, paid the IGP a courtesy call at the Force Headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday.
The purpose of the tour was to improve the Nigerian Police Force and Nigerian Air Force’s collaboration in tackling changing security issues.
The IGP further highlighted the need for enhanced protection of critical national infrastructure, improved logistics and response capabilities, as well as regular reviews of joint operational engagements to ensure greater effectiveness.
The IGP, addressing the Chief of the Air Staff, said: “You mentioned that the Nigeria Police assisted you at a particular time during a crisis. It is their duty to do that.
“We do almost the same work, though at different levels. I want to mention that when I was the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, a particular police officer was killed by a criminal known as 2Baba.
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“They killed the policeman, cut him to pieces, spread the body parts around, showed them on social media and ran into the thickest parts of the bush.
“And they were very strategic about it. They chose a dense area of the forest as their habitat. Before you could get to where they were, you needed to cross two rivers. So, you were in the middle of it. The moment you attempted to cross the river, they were picking you off. So, they chose a very difficult terrain.
“We did a lot of intelligence gathering on them and approached the Nigerian Air Force. They told us they were surprised at how we got that amount of intelligence. They looked at it, worked on it on their own and came back to us with feedback. That was actually the biggest job.
“They did their reconnaissance over the place. We were able to identify them moving around the area, and they told us the day they would strike. And behold, the Nigerian Air Force struck. Though 2Baba was not killed in that operation, they [the criminals] lost about five of their men, and it caused disarray in their camp.
“From that moment, they could not stop looking into the sky. They were frightened, and it allowed us to strike them and assault their camp, which eventually led to the death of 2Baba and the arrest of the others. I will continue to thank the Nigerian Air Force for its support.
“We are going to explore ways of working together.”
