A soldier from the 25 Task Force Brigade in Borno went on the rampage on Thursday, killing a female charity worker while seriously wounding a UN pilot.
According to reports, if not for the rapid action of his teammates who neutralised him, he would have claimed more lives.
The Theatre Command of "Operation Hadin Kai" responded to the incident by expressing regret over the sad event that occurred at one of its military bases.
Major Samson Zhakom, Assistant Director, Army Public Relations Headquarters, Theatre Command, said the soldier shot and killed a staff member of one of the NGOs providing humanitarian support in the Northeast.
“Same soldier also killed another soldier and injured the co-pilot of one of the UN helicopters. Own troops on the ground immediately neutralised the errant personnel,’’ he said.
He explained that the injured co-pilot had been stabilised while the corpses of the deceased have been moved to the 7 Division Hospital.
He added that a detailed investigation into the incident and subsequent remedial actions had started.
The soldier walked off his base in the remote town of Damboa in Borno, on Thursday and went on a shooting spree using an Ak47 rifle.
The development compelled humanitarian workers of an international non-governmental organisation waiting at the military base to board a helicopter back to Maiduguri to scamper to safety.
One of the humanitarian agencies’ workers, Abdulkareem Ibrahim, told NAN that the soldier emptied his magazine and after realising that he had run out of bullets, he brought out a jackknife.
“He stabbed a female staff of one of the international NGOs four times, killing her before injuring the helicopter pilot,” Mr Ibrahim said.
Mr Ibrahim added that the rampaging soldier again turned and chased his colleagues before he was gunned down to prevent further disaster.
He said that the pilots and the crew were safely evacuated back to Maiduguri while efforts were ongoing to stabilise the wounded co-pilot at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.
(NAN)