On Friday, the police in Plateau State announced the arrest of one suspect in the state’s attack on FRSC officials.
A tanker explosion incident on Thursday at the Bauchi Road junction claimed the lives of several people. The affected officials were reportedly on a rescue operation when a mob attacked them and set one of their working vehicles on fire.
Alabo Alfred, the state police spokesperson, announced the suspect’s arrest in a statement on Friday. He also stated that the number of fatalities from the tanker explosion had increased from 10 to 13.
The statement read, “Further investigation following Thursday’s incident at the Bauchi Road junction where a tanker truck loaded with petroleum product lost brake control and went up in flames at 1:30 pm revealed that “28 shops, 8 motor vehicles/cars, 6 tricycles and 2 motorcycles while 13 unidentified persons were burnt beyond recognition which is an increase of what was reported in our earlier release.
“The corpses have been buried by JNI according to Islamic rites while 10 injured persons were taken to various hospitals for medical attention.
“Further developments also revealed that an angry mob in their hundreds attacked the FRSC staff and burned down their operational vehicle with Reg No. AO1 783 RS, in the course of which one of the FRSC staff sustained injuries on his forehead. One suspect has been arrested.”
Meanwhile, the governor of the state, Simon Lalong, and the governor-elect, Caleb Mutfwang, have expressed sadness over the incident that claimed the lives of the residents and destroyed their properties.