The Lagos State Police Command, Southwest Nigeria, has ruled out terrorism, sabotage or the use of explosives as the cause of Monday’s explosion on Wey Street, Oke Mushin.
Commissioner of Police (CP) Tijani Fatai told reporters at a briefing yesterday evening that forensic investigations established the incident resulted from a mechanical failure.
Fatai said the explosion initially raised concerns about a possible improvised explosive device (IED), prompting a full technical response in line with established security protocols.
“Following the incident, preliminary observations and reports received at the scene raised concerns about the possibility of an IED. The incident was treated as a suspected explosive occurrence pending a comprehensive technical investigation,” he said.
The police boss said a team of specialists from the Nigeria Police Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (EOD/CBRN) Unit carried out an extensive forensic examination of the scene. The investigation, he said, included assessment of the affected vehicle, analysis of recovered fragments, examination of damage patterns, and interviews with witnesses.
Fatai said the findings were conclusive and indicated that there was no IED.
“Investigation has established that the incident was not caused by an IED, terrorist activities, sabotage or any form of criminal use of explosives,” he said.
According to the commissioner, forensic tests found no traces of explosive materials, detonators, initiation systems or explosive residues at the scene.
The vehicle also showed no structural deformation, fragmentation patterns, crater effects or displacement, which are hallmarks of an explosive attack, Fatai added.
Source: The Nation
