A 13-year-old secondary school student, Master Timothy Daniel Monday, was allegedly shot dead by a soldier attached to Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company Ltd. (Sterling Global) on New Year’s Day in Akwa Ibom State, leading to calls for justice and accountability.
Human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong disclosed the incident in a statement on Sunday, saying the killing occurred on Thursday, January 1, 2026, while the victim and his family were attending a crossover service at Mount Zion Church, Ette, in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area.
According to the account provided by the victim’s sister, Miss Miracle Daniel Monday, who witnessed the incident, she and her siblings stepped out of the church premises during the service when they were confronted by soldiers deployed to provide security for Sterling Global, a Nigerian indigenous oil and gas company.
Miracle alleged that a brief exchange with one of the soldiers escalated into violence, during which she was pushed to the ground and assaulted alongside her sister. She said another soldier later intervened, apologised, and asked them to leave the area.
Moments after they walked away, gunshots were heard. It was later discovered that Master Timothy had been shot and killed. The teenager was a Junior Secondary School 2 (JSS 2) student of Bensona International School, King Jaja Street, Borokiri, Port Harcourt.
Effiong said the family reported the incident to the Nigerian Army authorities at the 6 Battalion Wellington Basi Barracks in Ibagwa, Abak Local Government Area, as well as to the police.
He further alleged that as of the time of his statement, Sterling Global had not contacted or visited the bereaved family, describing the company’s alleged silence as “despicable and unacceptable.”
The lawyer called on the Minister of Defence, the Chief of Army Staff, the General Officer Commanding of the 6 Battalion, and the Akwa Ibom State Government to intervene urgently, ensure the alleged perpetrator is court-martialed, and provide adequate compensation to the family.
“No Nigerian should be killed in this manner by those who are supposed to protect them,” Effiong said, citing Section 33 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees the right to life.
The Nigerian Army and Sterling Global have yet to issue official statements on the incident at the time of filing this report.
