The Nigeria Police Force, on Saturday, said a total of 681 criminal elements were arrested for committing various offences between Thursday and Friday.
This was as the police stated that personnel deployed for the protests had been professional.
The police made this known while responding to the report released by Amnesty International which accused security agencies of killing 13 protesters on the first day of the protest.
The international organisation also slammed the security personnel for deliberately employing tactics designed to kill while managing gatherings and using firearms as a tactical tool for protest management.
PUNCH Online reported on Friday that Amnesty International condemned the killing of 13 protesters allegedly killed by security personnel across Nigeria, describing the incident as “unjustified and unacceptable”.
The Country Director, Isa Sanusi, disclosed this in a statement on Friday.
However, the Force Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, in a statement on Saturday, disagreed with AI’s figures and the allegations levelled against the security operatives.
Providing clarification on the causality figures, Adejobi said a total of seven persons died.
He said, “The Nigeria Police Force wishes to provide an accurate account of incidents from the first two days of the nationwide protests. In Borno State, four individuals lost their lives and 34 were severely injured in a terrorist attack by suspected Boko Haram/ISWAP elements who infiltrated the crowd of protesters and detonated an Improvised Explosive Device.
“Additionally, an incident occurred involving an unregistered Honda Prelude car that ran into the protesters, resulting in the deaths of two civilians. The driver abandoned the vehicle and fled the scene. Although the vehicle was vandalised after the incident, it has been recovered and is currently in police custody. Efforts are ongoing to trace the driver and bring him to justice.
