A local government chairman has narrated his experience in the hands of armed robbers during an incident that led to the death of a former commissioner, Sagwak Wazhi.

The Langtang South local government transition committee chairman, Nicholas Vongsing, survived the attack that occurred last week in Plateau State.

The Plateau State Police Command also confirmed Mr. Vongsing’s account of the incident.

Mr. Vongsing, who spoke with journalist on Tuesday in a telephone interview, said the hoodlums were not kidnappers but armed robbers who beat and dispossessed him of his belongings.

“I was not kidnapped, we were attacked by the robbers who flogged me and collected my phones and the sum of N15000”, he said.

“They forced me to lie down in the bush so I could not communicate with anyone for hours. That is the reason why stories were spreading around that I was kidnapped,” Mr. Vongsing explained.

Recounting the incident, the council chairman said the vehicle in which he was riding with the late Mr. Wazhi ran into the robbers along Mangu Hale bypass at about 8:30 p.m. on Thursday.

“I was in the vehicle with the former commissioner of Agriculture, Sargwak Wazhi. The robbers shot at him, as a result, he lost control and the car ran into the bush. He died on the spot. The robbers collected all our personal effects.

“My driver who was following behind us with my car (Nicholas Vongsing) was also shot, but he managed to escape. He is now being treated at the zonal hospital of the Jos University Teaching Hospital JUTH in Zamko, Langtang south.”

The police in the state confirmed the incident.

The spokesperson of the police in the state, Terna Tyopev, in a press statement issued in Jos on Tuesday, said the chairman was not kidnapped as initially reported.

“The command warns also that it would not hesitate to take legal action against any journalist who indulges in unethical journalistic practice just to tarnish the image of the Nigeria Police Force,” Mr. Tyopev said.

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How I survived armed robbery that caused death of late Sargwak Wazhi – Council Chairman