The British High Commission has denied media reports alleging that a serving member of the United Kingdom Armed Forces was involved in an illegal arms procurement scheme in Nigeria.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the High Commission clarified that the individual identified in the reports is not a serving officer in the UK military. “The individual identified in recent Nigerian media reporting is not a serving member of the UK Armed Forces,” the statement read.
Further details revealed that the person in question had previously served as a junior rank in the UK Armed Forces Reserves but had since been discharged. The High Commission also emphasized that the individual never held commissioned officer status during their time in service.
Due to obligations under common law and the UK’s Data Protection Act, the commission stated that no additional personal information about the individual would be disclosed. “We have a common law and Data Protection Act duty to protect the personal details of our current and former employees and are therefore not able to release any additional information in this matter,” it added.
Reports earlier published by DIP CONNECT ONLINE alleged that a British Army officer had been recruited to procure weapons aimed at escalating ethnic tensions in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta. According to the report, operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) from the Delta State Command foiled the deal during a covert operation on Friday night near Asaba.
During the sting operation, authorities reportedly seized over 50 AK-47 rifles, six pump-action shotguns, and more than 3,000 rounds of ammunition. The suspected British officer was intercepted in Lagos while attempting to board a flight to the United Kingdom, while his alleged associates were apprehended in Asaba.
In response to the incident, a group of Niger Delta stakeholders and civil society organisations staged a protest at the British High Commission on Monday, calling for a comprehensive investigation. They urged the UK government to fully cooperate with the DSS to uncover the network behind the arms deal, stressing that some collaborators were still at large.
