The British High Commission on Tuesday said the alleged “British Soldier” Micah Polo, who was arrested for gun running, is not a serving member of the UK Armed Forces.

The suspect, who was referred to as a Major in the British armed forces, was discharged as a junior rank UK Armed Forces Reserves.

Micah, Nigerian by birth, was recently apprehended in connection with procuring illegal arms to fuel the alleged planned mayhem.

The High Commission, in a statement issued to diplomatic correspondents in Abuja, stated that he was not a commissioned officer.

The clarification was issued following recent media reports concerning an individual allegedly linked to the UK Armed Forces in connection with illegal arms procurement in Nigeria.

A spokesperson from the British High Commission said: “The individual identified in recent Nigerian media reporting is not a serving member of the UK Armed Forces.”

“The individual identified did serve as a junior rank in the UK Armed Forces Reserves but was discharged.

“While in the Reserves, he was a junior rank, not a commissioned officer. The High Commission refused to say much on the suspect based on data protection law.

“We have a common law and Data Protection Act duty to protect the personal details of our current and former employees and are therefore not able to release any additional information in this matter.”

[TheNation]