The Defence Headquarters yesterday said that a
Boko Haram commander, Momodu Bama, who
was said to be the second-in-command to the
leader of the sect, Imam Abubakar Shekau and
17 others, had been killed in a shoot-out
between Special Forces and the insurgents.
Besides, 24 members of the sect were arrested
by the troops.
Bama was one of the 19 leaders of Boko
Haram declared wanted by the Joint Task Force
(JTF) in Borno State on November 23, last year.
There was no independent confirmation of
Bama’s death last night.
But it was learnt that the commander’s body
was taken away by the insurgents.
According to a statement by the Director of
Information at the Defence Headquarters,
Brig.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, Shekau’s deputy
was killed along the “Bama corridor”. He was
described as an expert in manning anti-aircraft
guns for Boko Haram.
The statement said: “As troops intensify pursuit
of terrorists, who have been unleashing
mayhem in Borno and Yobe communities, the
death of Momodu Bama, said to be the second-
in-command to the leader of Boko Haram,
Abubakar Shekau, has been confirmed by other
arrested terrorists.
“This followed encounters with the terrorists
around the Bama corridor.
“Momodu Bama has been personally leading
the attacks against troops and innocent citizens
in the communities of Yobe and Adamawa.
“A specialist in manning the anti-aircraft guns
of the group, he is known to be vicious and
heartless with a penchant for personally
slaughtering and executing his victims.
“Momodu Bama has been a most wanted
terrorist with a N25million bounty already
placed on his head.
“Others that died in the operation include
Bama’s father, Alhaji Abatcha Flatari, who is
also one of the spiritual guiding lights of the
outlawed terrorists group. 17 other terrorists
also lost their lives in the encounter while 24
were arrested.
“The troops are continuing the pursuit of the
terrorists while intensifying aggressive aerial
and land patrols to ensure better security
cover for the communities, especially in the
two states.”
Shedding more light on the encounters with
Boko Haram members, a top source added:
“The second-in-command to Boko Haram
leader and 17 others were actually killed
between Sunday and Monday in Bama corridor.
“What happened was that after they attacked
Bama town, we launched counter-attacks. It
was in the process of trailing them that troops
engaged the insurgents in some encounters
which led to the death of the 18, including
Momodu Bama and his father.
“We did not even know that Momodu Bama
was shot dead in the crossfire until we started
interrogating the arrested suspects who
confirmed it to us. They gave us sufficient
testimony to reach our conclusion.”
Asked if the military had retrieved Bama’s
body, the source said: “As usual of the sect,
they took away the corpse of Momodu Bama.”
Bama was one of the 19 leaders of Boko
Haram declared wanted by the Joint Task Force
(JTF) in Borno State on November 23, 2012.
A N25million ransom was placed on him by
the JTF.
Others were four members of the Shurra
Committee of the sect, including, Shekau
(N50million); Habibu Yusuf (a.k.a Asalafi)
N25million; Khalid Albarnawai( N25million);
and Mohammed Zangina (N25million).
The Boko Haram Commanders are Abu Saad
(N10million); Abba Kaka (N10million);
Abdulmalik Bama (N10million) Umar Fulata
(N10million); Alhaji Mustapha (Massa) Ibrahim
(N10million); Abubakar Suleiman-Habu (a.k.a
Khalid) N10million; Hassan Jazair N10million;
Ali Jalingo (N10million); Alhaji Musa Modu
(N10million); Bashir Aketa (N10million); Abba
Goroma(N10million); Ibrahim Bashir
(N10million); Abubakar Zakariya (N10million);
and Tukur Ahmed Mohammed (N10million).
In Maiduguri, JTF also confirmed Bama’s
killing.
JTF spokesman Lt. Col. Sagir Musa told
reporters that the person killed by security
forces in neighbouring Adamawa State was not
Momodu Bama as claimed.
“It is either the suspect adopted the name of
Momodu Bama, a popular Boko Haram
operation officer and the second-in-command
to Shekau, or the task force could not
ascertain his real identity.
“On the contrary, we killed Bama and his
father, Abatcha Flatari, a Boko Haram spiritual
leader, on August 4 during a counter-
insurgency operation at Bama.”
He added that “it took over a week to ascertain
their identities”.
A JTF statement said Bama, also called “Abu
Saad” by sect members, was “one of the most
vicious and heartless killers in the group with
penchant for slaughtering his victims”.
“He had a bounty of 25 million naira placed on
him by the JTF and the said Momodu Bama’s
father, Abatcha Flatari was one of the spiritual
leaders of Boko Haram in charge of
indoctrinating children who are mainly
abducted to serve as foot soldiers.”
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