Is Shekau Dead?

Investigators of the Joint Task Force (JTF) who have been probing the video of the leader of the dreaded Islamic militant sect, Boko Haram, Mallam Abubakar Shekau have rubbished a supposed video of the militant leader, which indicated he was still alive.

A report put together by the team of investigators on behalf of the security agencies  said that the investigators have been able to fault the video in “a number of ways.”

Though the real location of the militant leader is yet to be ascertained by the security forces, there was a strong belief in the forces that Shekau was not alive.

Analysis of the last video said to have been made available to authorities indicated that Shekau was cloned.

Sources in the know quoted the report as submitting that Shekau in previous video appearances would start with a recitation of a full verse of the Holy Quran that sometimes could last up to five minutes.

The report indicated that the stand-in Shekau in the video never observed that tradition.

Reports also indicated that in previous occasions, Shekau’s speech was never interrupted by hailing from the background and that the last video had such features.

Investigations by the JTF was also said to have identified that the movement on the lips of the man presented as Shekau in the video did not  synchronise with the words he pronounced, an indication according to the report of “a recorded message inefficiently manipulated to sustain a non-existent continuum in leadership.”

The report according to the sources also indicated that following the failure of the alleged attempt to mimic Shekau’s voice in the opening part of the video, alleged stand-in Shekau reverted to his real voice.

“The intonation was different as well as the fact that Abubakar Shekau does not drag his voice,” the analysis further stated.

Source: Nigerian Tribune