DIG Haruna, who was patrolling the crisis-torn Jos, was returning to Abuja when the helicopter crashed and killed him along with chief superintendent Alexander Pwol-Ja, Sgt. Sonatiam Shirunam and Assistant Commissioner Garba Yalwa, the helicopter's pilot.
According to Leadership Newspaper, a member of the Kabong community in Jos North local government area of Plateau State, where the crash occurred, Mr. Solomon Achis, said the helicopter, which came down around 11am, appeared to have developed a serious engine problem mid air.
Achis said, “We saw the helicopter going up and down as if it was being pursued by some forces. It made some unusual noise as it was struggling to gain stability but to no avail.”
Achis said that the cranky sounds emanating from the engine of the ill-fated helicopter aroused suspicion that all was not well with it and that they were not surprised when it suddenly crashed.
“It was making noise and coming too close to the ground, then it fell into a building and caught fire in the process,” the witness said.
He noted that the helicopter would have landed on a mother and her baby, but the woman managed to run to safety just before the helicopter fell.
He said the crash destroyed three houses in the area and would have caused more havoc but for the timely intervention of the youths, who mobilized to extinguish the fire with detergent and sand.
3 other officers killed are Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP Garba Yalwa - Pilot, Chief Superintendent of Police, CSP Alexander Pwol-Ja - co-pilot and Sgt Sonatian Shirunam – orderly.
DIG Haruna John was born on the 16th August, 1956, in Karim Lamido LGA, Taraba State. He enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force on 5th June, 1978 as Cadet Inspector and rose through the rank to become a Deputy Inspector-General of Police. He was a former Commissioner of Police in-charge of Anambra, Niger, FCT Abuja and Benue State Police Commands respectively.
While in service, he attended several professional courses both within and outside the country. He was at Wakefield UK for General Investigation Course, where he passed out as the best Commonwealth student. He was also in China in 2009 and 2010 for Professional Police Leadership Trainings. Haruna was promoted a DIG about 3 weeks ago and only decorated a few days ago. He was in charge of operations at the Police Headquarters in Abuja and had been drafted to Jos by the Inspector General of Police (IG) MD Abubakar following the deadly Boko Haram bomb blasts that had targeted two churches in Jos.
DIG Haruna John was born on the 16th August, 1956, in Karim Lamido LGA, Taraba State. He enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force on 5th June, 1978 as Cadet Inspector and rose through the rank to become a Deputy Inspector-General of Police. He was a former Commissioner of Police in-charge of Anambra, Niger, FCT Abuja and Benue State Police Commands respectively.
While in service, he attended several professional courses both within and outside the country. He was at Wakefield UK for General Investigation Course, where he passed out as the best Commonwealth student. He was also in China in 2009 and 2010 for Professional Police Leadership Trainings. Haruna was promoted a DIG about 3 weeks ago and only decorated a few days ago. He was in charge of operations at the Police Headquarters in Abuja and had been drafted to Jos by the Inspector General of Police (IG) MD Abubakar following the deadly Boko Haram bomb blasts that had targeted two churches in Jos.
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