Lt. Yarima escapes alleged assassination attempt in Abuja
Lt. A. M. Yarima
A young Nigerian Navy officer, Lt. A.M. Yarima who recently got involved in a heated confrontation with Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike has reportedly escaped an assassination attempt today in Abuja.
According to Vanguard, the military sources told newsmen that the officer was trailed on Sunday evening by unidentified men dressed in black and travelling in two unmarked Hilux vans. The suspects allegedly followed him from the NIPCO Filling Station along the Line Expressway to Gado Nasco Way.
The source stated that Yarima noticed the suspicious movement and executed a “strategic maneuver,” successfully evading the vehicles around 6:30 p.m. The matter is currently under investigation, with authorities said to be treating it with “the seriousness it deserves.” Further details have been withheld to avoid jeopardising ongoing findings.
The incident comes just days after Yarima, while on official duty, engaged in a tense exchange with FCT Minister Wike at a disputed land site in Gaduwa District. The confrontation, which was captured on video, quickly went viral and sparked nationwide debate, prompting the Presidency to halt the demolition exercise at the site.
Following the clash, military veterans across the country condemned Wike’s verbal attack on the officer and dismissed calls for disciplinary action against Yarima. Spokesman for the Coalition of Retired Veterans, Abiodun Durowaiye-Herberts, warned that ex-service members would “occupy the office and residence of the FCT Minister” if any sanction was imposed on the officer. He insisted that military personnel owe their allegiance to the nation, not individual office holders, and called on Wike to apologise.
“How can a public office holder call an officer ‘a fool’ on camera?” he asked, describing the minister’s conduct as damaging to national institutions.
Meanwhile, Minister of Defence Mohammad Badaru Abubakar has assured that no military officer performing lawful duties will be punished over the incident.
“We will always protect officers and our armed forces personnel on lawful duty,” he said during a ministerial briefing ahead of the 2026 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebrations.
Veterans had earlier vowed to mobilise and occupy the FCT Ministry if any action was taken against Lt. Yarima.
