Soldiers who maltreated crippled man in Onitsha demoted, imprisoned with hard labour

Two soldiers, caught on video assaulting a physically challenged man in Onitsha, Anambra State, have been demoted and imprisoned with hard labour.


This was revealed in a statement released by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier-General Sani Kukasheka Usman on Friday.

The two soldiers’ names were given as Corporal Bature Samuel and Corportal Abdulazeez Usman of 82 Provost Company.
They have been arrested, summarily tried and found guilty on two counts.

“Consequently, both have been sentenced to reduction in rank; from Corporal to Private Soldiers and 21 days Imprisonment with Hard Labour (IHL) respectively, which includes forfeiture of 21 days pay to the Federal Government of Nigeria,” part of the statement read.
 
“The Nigerian Army has also reached out to the victim of their unjustifiable assault, Mr. Chijoke Uraku (alias CJ), as widely reported by the media.

“We wish to reiterate our avowed determination to ensure that troops conduct themselves in the most orderly and professional manner at all times. Any act of indiscipline would not be tolerated”, he added.
Earlier this week, a clip of the soldiers dragging and beating the crippled man went viral, attracting a lot of criticism from the public and calls for them to be punished.