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Retired naval officer, Commodore Promise Dapper, has said investigators should consider every possible explanation for the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) aircraft crash in Igbokada, Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State.
Dapper, speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s LunchTime Politics on Wednesday, said it would be premature to exclude possibilities such as sabotage or an attack while investigations into the incident are ongoing.
According to him, investigators must keep an open mind until the circumstances surrounding the crash are fully established.
“The crash is being investigated, but you cannot rule everything out; all the cards have to be on the table. You cannot rule out sabotage; air attack, you cannot rule out anything,” Dapper said.
He also pointed to accounts from some eyewitnesses who reportedly saw pieces of the aircraft falling in different locations before the main wreckage came down.
“You cannot even rule out bombing because, from what some of the eyewitnesses are saying, they are seeing wreckage splinters of the aircraft while it was still in the air, and most of these splinters are found in far-flung villages and nearby places before the aircraft even got on the ground,” he added.
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The comments followed Monday’s crash involving an NAF 931 aircraft carrying 25 people, comprising 20 passengers and five crew members.
The aircraft came down in a swampy area near the naval base in Igbokada at about 9 a.m., according to reports on the incident.
Following the crash, efforts have been intensified to locate and recover the victims as well as the aircraft wreckage from the area.
The Marine Police said they were working alongside the Nigerian Navy and local residents as part of the recovery operation.
The Navy has also restricted access to the crash site as residents and sympathisers continued to gather around the area.
