Panic In Abuja: Two Military Officers Escape As Coup Plot Arrests Intensify

Two Nigerian military officers have reportedly fled the country after being linked to an alleged plot to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s democratic government.

Security sources told The Cable that the officers escaped just before security agencies began a fresh wave of arrests connected to the failed coup attempt, which has already led to the detention of at least 16 military personnel since early October.

One of the fleeing officers was identified as Major J. M. Ganaks (Service No. N/14363), a member of Regular Course 58 of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), who hails from the Federal Capital Territory and was last posted to Jaji, Kaduna State.

The second officer, Captain G. Binuga (Service No. N/167722), from Taraba State, belonged to Regular Course 64 and was attached to the Defence Headquarters Special Operations Force (SOF) in Bida, Niger State.

Both men were reportedly among 18 personnel marked for arrest but managed to evade capture and are now believed to have fled Nigeria.

Sources within the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA)—which is spearheading the investigation—confirmed that interrogations of detained suspects have produced “useful statements” leading to further arrests.

According to a senior intelligence operative, “Some of the officers have remained silent, but many others have been cooperative.”

The DIA-led operation forms part of a broader nationwide crackdown on military personnel accused of involvement in the alleged coup plot against the Tinubu administration.