NSCDC suspends officer over Abuja market shooting

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has suspended a Deputy Superintendent of Corps, Onoja Babayo Samuel, over alleged sporadic shooting during a confrontation with traders at Kubwa Market, Abuja.

The corps also ordered an Orderly Room Trial to determine the officer’s culpability in the incident, which occurred on October 25, 2026.

The suspension followed the officer’s arrest by the Federal Capital Territory Police Command for allegedly firing shots into the air during a confrontation with traders.

The NSCDC, in a statement on Thursday by its National Public Relations Officer, Babawale Afolabi, said the officer’s conduct amounted to a gross violation of the corps’ rules of engagement and standard operating procedures.

The Commandant-General of the corps, Ahmed Audi, was quoted as directing the immediate suspension of the officer and the commencement of disciplinary proceedings.

“The Commandant General of the NSCDC, Prof Ahmed Abubakar Audi, who maintains zero tolerance for misuse of firearms or any form of professional misconduct, has therefore directed an immediate suspension of the personnel and Orderly Room Trial to determine his level of culpability in the alleged offence,” the statement read.

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The corps said Samuel had been stripped of his official responsibilities and relieved of his assignment pending the conclusion of the disciplinary proceedings.

It added that a committee at its national headquarters in Abuja would handle the matter, while the outcome of the Orderly Room Trial and internal disciplinary process would be made public upon conclusion.

The NSCDC reiterated its commitment to protecting lives and maintaining professional standards, warning that it would not tolerate or shield any officer whose actions endangered public safety or violated operational guidelines.

The FCT Police Command had earlier said the officer was arrested after a distress call reported that an armed man was firing shots into the air at a market in Kubwa.

The police spokesperson, SP Josephine Adeh, said the suspect had gone to the market with a pistol following reports that some traders had assaulted his wife.

Police operatives attached to the Kubwa Division were deployed to the scene, where they disarmed and arrested him.