CBRN event in Nigeria on Sun 8th March 2026

Residents of Iffe Ijumu in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State are demanding urgent investigation after Miss Iyabo Iwamofe, a local shop owner and Women Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Iffe/Ikoyi Ward, sustained severe facial injuries in an alleged incident of police misconduct on Sunday, March 8, 2026.   A video obtained by SaharaReporters shows Iwamofe in hospital with a large scar on her face, recounting how she was struck.  “I sat in front of my shop when I suddenly saw a police van close to my shop. The next I saw was that they started firing and I fell,” she said.     Eyewitnesses confirmed her account.  Sade Obangbemi, who was nearby, recalled: “I was close to the vicinity to charge phone when those policemen suddenly came and started shooting. They shot Aunty Iyabo. We even thought she was dead, but we rushed her to the General Hospital. By the time she was accepted, it was around 8:30 p.m. at night.” Another resident added that Iwamofe had no confrontation with the officers before she was hit. “She did not have any issue or fight with the police,” the resident said.  “She was in front of her shop when she suddenly fell due to the shot fired. I was close to the place with others and we were only relaxing being a Sunday.”  In another video obtained by SaharaReporters, which captured the police invasion, gunshots could be heard followed by screams from members of the community. However, Bayo Joshua, Chairman of the Iffe Development Union, Lokoja Branch, clarified that Iwamofe was struck by a tear gas canister fired by police officers.  “On Sunday, 8th March 2026, Miss Iyabo Iwamofe, a respected member of the community and Women Leader of APC, Iffe/Ikoyi Ward, reportedly suffered serious facial injuries after a live tear gas canister was fired into her shop without provocation. The attack caused permanent damage and significant emotional trauma, according to community leaders,” Joshua said in statement.  “The injury has not only caused permanent damage to her face but has also deprived her of many freedoms and created deep emotional trauma in her life,” he said.   Joshua described the incident as a grave violation of citizens’ rights and noted that it was the second reported case of alleged harassment by officers from the Nigeria Police Divisional Headquarters, Ekinrin-Adde, since its inauguration on June 25, 2025.