The Nigerian Air Force says that the death of flying officer, Tolu Arotile, was caused by what it describes as brute force and severe injuries following a road traffic accident at NAF Base Kaduna on Tuesday.
In a news conference on Sunday, the spokesperson, Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, said the military is ruling out any possibility of foul play in the death of the young flying officer.
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Commodore Daramola also confirmed that the driver of the vehicle that knocked down the late officer, Mr Nehemiah Adejo and the two other occupants of the car will be handed over to the police for prosecution since it is a civil case.
Meanwhile, a military source had earlier told Channels Television that the driver who knocked down Arotile is a civilian who had no valid driving credentials.
According to the source, the driver was also her secondary school classmate.
The family of the late officer and some prominent Nigerians have called for a thorough investigation into the circumstances leading to her death.
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Arotile is Nigeria’s first female helicopter combat pilot.
“Until her death, Flying Officer Arotile, who was commissioned into the NAF in September 2017 as a member of Nigerian Defence Academy Regular Course 64, was the first-ever female combat helicopter pilot in the Service,” the Air Force spokesman, said in an earlier statement.
“During her short but impactful stay in the Service, late Arotile, who hailed from Iffe in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State, contributed significantly to the efforts to rid the North Central States of armed bandits and other criminal elements by flying several combat missions under Operation GAMA AIKI in Minna, Niger State.”
