http://www.channelstv.com/home/2012/02/26/bauchi-state-police-arrests-8-suspects-over-church-bombing-plot/

Bauchi State: Police arrests 8 suspects over church bombing plot

Eight persons, suspected of allegedly attempting a bomb attack on a rival faction of their own church, have been arrested the Bauchi state police confirmed.

According to the Reuters report, the attempted attack had taken place only hours after the suicide bombing of the Church of Christ in Nigeria in Jos, Plateau state.

Police in Bauchi say the suspects, who are reportedly not members of the radical sect, were caught with explosives in their possession, as well as other weapons, at the Evangelical Church of West Africa.

“Some people attempted to attack the ECWA Church. It was a rival group within the church … this morning,” police Commissioner Ikechukwu Ayo Aduba told Reuters in a phone interview.

“When we got the report we sent our men who arrested about eight of them and seized the explosives.”

Earlier today, a lone suicide bomber driving a black car packed with explosives had rammed the gates of the Church of Christ in Nigeria, only 30 minutes into the morning service.

Nigeria emergency services say three people were killed and at least 38 injured. Witnesses say the gates had been closed for the worship session when suicide bomber had attempted to force his way in.

He detonated the device and brought the service to a premature dreadful end.

Radical Islamic sect, Boko Haram, claimed responsibility for the attacks, which they say were without reason.

They also promised more attacks on the way, which many fear will lead to a wider rift between both religions.

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/police-arrest-8-over-attempt-to-bomb-church/110165/

http://www.peoplesdaily-online.com/news/national-news/30963-8-nabbed-attempting-to-bomb-own-church-in-bauchi-

http://elombah.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10033:police-arrest-seven-people-with-weapons-explosives-in-attempt-to-attack-cocin-church-in-bauchi&catid=31:general&Itemid=69


ThisDay's version
By Segun Awofadeji

Bauchi State Police Command Sunday arrested eight persons in connection with an alleged attempt to bomb COCIN LCC Church in Miya Barkatai village in Toro Local Government Area of the state.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ikechukwu Aduba, said in a statement in Bauchi, that the timely intervention of the police prevented the occurrence of an ugly incident in the state.

Aduba said the act was to be carried out by members of a rival group in the COCIN church in the village due to some misunderstanding among them.

“There had been a lingering rivalry and acrimony between the COCIN church adherents within Toro/Tilden Fulani axis of Bauchi State. The said rivalry came to a head Sunday when one of the factions stormed the COCIN church and demanded for documents belonging to the church and which led to a row,” the commissioner said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the inability of the rival group to secure the church's documents angered members of the group who later returned to the church with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) but were apprehended by the police before carrying out the act.
“Our bomb experts, having successfully disarmed the recovered IED, have further confirmed that it is a complete bomb, manually operated and that it is the second time we are seeing this kind of IED as it is clearly similar to those used in the foiled Ganjuwa invasion; very potent and dangerous,” he said.

The statement added that the suspects were already in police custody helping out with investigations and would soon be brought to book. It called on the general public to be wary of the activities of those that demand for various tin cans and plastic materials as those items were now used in making IEDs. The statement assured that the police would checkmate the activities of such evil perpetrators and therefore called on people to provide useful information.

A Toro local government official who witnessed the incident said: “The suspects were arrested with sophisticated weapons and all of them are living in the area even though they are from the neighbouring villages near Miya Barkatai.” The official who pleaded anonymity said after they were arrested there was confusion among the residents and Christian worshippers that raised high tension in the area the people wanted the security personnel to allow them to deal with the suspects.

He said soldiers and other security operatives took away the suspects to Bauchi for further investigations.

Meanwhile, the President of COCIN, Rev. Soja Bewarang, has described the police statement as “absolutely untrue”, adding that it was “impossible” for any branch to have a dispute without his knowledge or that of the church headquarters.
Bewarang said the story was created to cause confusion about the current situation