Adamawa Explosion: Death toll rises to 18, suspect arrested – Nigerian military

“A suspect who was said to have been identified with the car used in conveying the bomb device has been arrested by troops in the area.”

The death toll in Sunday’s bomb explosion in Mubi, Adamawa State, has risen to 18 from the initial 14 deaths confirmed by the police.

This is contained in a statement signed by the Director of Defence Information, Maj.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, on Sunday in Abuja.

The statement also said that the number of injured people had risen to 19 as against 12 earlier confirmed by the police.

It said that all the injured persons had been evacuated to hospitals for treatment.

The military spokesperson also said one suspect liked to the blast has been arrested.

“A suspect who was said to have been identified with the car used in conveying the bomb device has been arrested by troops in the area.

“He is being interrogated while further investigation is ongoing,” the statement said.

Read our earlier story below.

At least 14 people have been killed in a bomb attack at a bar near a military base in Mubi, Adamawa State, residents and police said.

The attack occurred in an area called Kabang, and 14 persons have been so far confirmed dead and 12 injured, the Adamawa State police spokesperson, Othman Abubakar, told PREMIUM TIMES.

The wounded have been evacuated and are receiving treatment at the Mubi Cottage Hospital, Mubi, he said.

“It happened near a drinking joint,” he said.

Residents said dozens more may have been killed in the explosion.

Some reports say as many as 40 people may have been killed as the bar was screening a football match when the attack occurred.

One resident, Umar Ahmed, said the explosion occurred at about 7 p.m. local time, before the start of a night curfew that has been in place in the town for months.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack although extremist Boko Haram is suspected.

Adamawa State, alongside neighbouring Borno and Yobe States, is the hotbed of Boko Haram insurgency that has lasted five years.

Attacks by the group have continued despite a state of emergency in the three states in the last one year.

The group has scaled up attacks in the past weeks after abducting more than 250 school girls in Borno State.

The Mubi explosion follows similar bombings in Abuja, Kano and Plateau States, all happening in the last two months, killing more than 300 people.

(NAN)