The Nigerian army says it has arrested Shettima Lawan, a chairman of Mafa local government area of Borno state, for alleged links to Boko Haram.
Theatre commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Lucky Irabor, on Wednesday, at a news conference in Maiduguri, described him as a big supporter of Boko Haram.
He accused Lawan and his father of providing moral support for the sect.
“All I can say is that the chairman is a big supporter of Boko Haram,” he said.
“We heard that he harboured Boko Haram members along with his father. He kept the Boko Haram members because the father begged him to do so.
“The chairman was in the habit of accommodating people that had fled from the bush. At some point, he has been valuable to us being with the Civilian JTF to fight Boko Haram, but that does not mean we cannot investigate him for a crime like this.”
Irabor also disclosed that the vice-chairman of another local government area had been arrested
“We have also arrested the vice-chairman of Kaga Local government and he is undergoing interrogation.”
They should be dealt with severely.