Government owns up, says trigger-happy man is a police officer

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU:   The government has bowed to public pressure and owned up the man who fired at protestors last month in Mogadishu was a police officer and has since been arrested.

Security Minister Hassan Jimale said in a radio interview Sunday the man widely claimed to be an intelligence agent was a member of the Somali Police Force.

The officer was captured on video pointing a pistol at a group of female protestors and subsequently firing at other protestors who were a distance away. The video which was widely circulated online sparked uproar from Somalis online and opposition politicians who demanded action against the officer.

Jimale said the officer had since been arrested and will be charged. “The man is a member of Somali Police Force and has been arrested,” the minister said amid increasing accusations against the government for allegedly using security forces to tame dissent.

Protests broke out in various parts of Mogadishu last month against President Mohamed Farmaajo over claims he was bent on rigging the upcoming elections. The opposition has accused the president of packing the federal elections team with cronies, senior civil servants and intelligence agents.