Egbetokun asks Senate to hold closed-door hearings on missing 3,907 AK-47 rifles
The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, has called on the Senate to investigate the alleged disappearance of 3,907 assault rifles, insisting that the matter be handled behind closed doors for security reasons.
In a letter addressed to the Senate, Egbetokun dismissed the 2019 Audit Report by the Auditor-General for the Federation, which alleged that thousands of rifles were missing or unaccounted for in the police armoury as of January 2020. He described the report as inaccurate.
The letter, read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio after the passage of the 2025 budget, was submitted 48 hours after a tense investigative hearing. During the hearing, top police officials, including the IGP, appeared before the Senate Committee on Accounts but struggled to provide satisfactory answers regarding the Auditor-General’s claims about the missing firearms.
The letter reads, “We appreciate the Senate committee’s probe into the alleged missing firearms and urge the committee to conduct future hearings on sensitive security issues in camera so that the wrong impression is not created in the minds of Nigerians and the international community.
“Conducting hearings on these sensitive security issues behind closed doors will help prevent misinformation, protect national security interests, and allow for more candid discussions and fact-finding.”
The IGP also urged lawmakers to grant additional time for the police to carry out internal investigations into the matter.
Responding to the audit report on Thursday, the Force spokesman, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, told journalists in Abuja that significant efforts had been made to account for the missing firearms, with many already recovered and returned to the police armoury.
